Jan. 5 (Bloomberg) — Dubai renamed the world’s tallest building in honor of the ruler of Abu Dhabi less than a month after receiving a $10 billion lifeline from the neighboring emirate that defused a financial crisis.
The 200-story Burj Khalifa, or Khalifa Tower, was known until yesterday as Burj Dubai. Sheikh Khalifa Bin Zayed Al Nahyan, who has ruled Abu Dhabi since 2004, is also president of the United Arab Emirates.
“Sheikh Khalifa is one of the U.A.E.’s symbols,” said Sheikh Ahmed bin Saeed al-Maktoum, chairman of Dubai’s Supreme Fiscal Committee and an uncle of Dubai’s ruler, Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum. The decision to change the name, made by Sheikh Mohammed, reflects the unity of the federation, he said in an interview after the building’s official opening, which featured fireworks and parachutists descending from the top of the tower.
The move also underscores the changing fortunes within the United Arab Emirates.
The federal government and its largest member, Abu Dhabi, lent Dubai about $25 billion last year as the second-largest of the U.A.E.’s sheikhdoms sought help to pay its debts after it borrowed at least $80 billion to build itself into a financial and tourism hub.







