Jared Kushner’s private equity firm backed by UAE and Qatari funds

Sovereign wealth funds from the UAE and Qatar invested millions of dollars in former US president Donald Trump’s son-in-law Jared Kushner’s private equity firm, according to a news report.

The UAE fund invested more than $200 million with Kushner’s Affinity Partners, while a Qatari entity put in an equivalent amount, the New York Times said, citing informed sources.

The investment from the UAE came through a sovereign wealth fund; however, the report said the Qatari investor’s identity was unclear.

Kushner founded the Miami-based Affinity Partners in 2021.

In June 2022, a US House of Representatives committee launched an investigation into a $2 billion investment by the Saudi government into Kushner’s firm, NBC News reported.

In a letter, chairwoman Carolyn Maloney told Kushner that her committee was looking into a Saudi sovereign wealth fund’s investment into Affinity.

She noted that Kushner created his investment firm the day after Trump left the White House in January 2021 and the Saudi government gave it the $2 billion six months later, the news outlet said.

In October 2022, UAE-based unicorn Emerging Markets Property Group (EMPG) completed a $200 million investment led by Affinity Partners.

EMPG owns leading UAE classifieds platforms Bayut and Dubizzle, along with several platforms across emerging markets focused on Mena, south and southeast Asia.

Affinity received commitments of more than $3 billion by the end of 2021 to invest in US and Israeli companies that are expanding in India, Africa, the Middle East and other parts of Asia.