Banking & Finance Abu Dhabi fund-led consortium to buy stake in Israeli financial firm By Reuters December 15, 2022 WAM ADQ began in 2018 as a holding company for government assets A consortium led by Abu Dhabi state holding firm ADQ is in advanced negotiations to acquire a controlling stake in Israeli financial firm Phoenix Group, according to a statement on Wednesday. US private investment firms Centerbridge Partners and Gallatin Point Capital, which hold 33.4 percent of the Israeli firm, are in talks to sell about 25-30 percent of their investment to the Abu Dhabi funds, the two companies said in a statement. “The transaction will be subject to regulatory approvals, which will include a control permit from Israel’s Capital Market, Insurance and Savings Authority,” Centrebridge and Gallatin said in the statement The UAE became the first Gulf state to normalise relations with Israel under a US-brokered agreement, dubbed the “Abraham Accords”, in 2020. In October, sovereign wealth fund tracker Global SWF estimated that Abu Dhabi’s ADQ has seen its assets under management grow to $157 billion. The fund began in 2018 as a holding company for government assets and has been consolidating its portfolio, privatising some assets and making strategic acquisitions to build companies that are leaders in their industries locally or regionally.
