Longer hours for money exchange centres
Exchange centers, engaged in remittances, currency exchange and related services, have revised working hours for the holy month of Ramadan.
They have decided to open from 9am until midnight.
Most exchange houses were until now opening their branches from 7.30-8am until 10-10.30pm.
The branches operating in shopping malls will remain open for longer hours.
“During Ramadan, our branches in malls will open at 9am and work until midnight while other branches will be open until 11pm,” said an official of UAE Exchange.
Exchange houses are expecting more business during the holy month as remittances rise during this time. “During Ramadan, there is surge in the number of transactions.
“We have seen around 10-15 percent rise in the number of transactions during the holy month compared to other months,” said Zuber Abdul Rahman, Operations Manager, Al Zaman Exchange.
Major rise is seen in remittances to Asian countries, according to exchange houses. “Remittances to India, Bangladesh, Pakistan and Egypt increase during the holy month,” Rahman added.
Many counterfeit goods are sold at car boot sales, pubs, markets or fairs. This makes it difficult to trace the fraudster once you’ve bought from them. Fake goods are also sold online, although auction sites such as eBay are doing their best to clamp down on counterfeiting and piracy. Anti-counterfeiting activists, also as the United States Department of Homeland Security, are getting tough on those who traffic in counterfeit merchandise that pretends to be from a trusted brand-name. But now a few want to turn that scrutiny on the customers of these goods. People who knowingly buy such goods could end up behind bars if lawmakers are effective.