Skip to content Skip to Search
Skip navigation
Company Insights

Mumtalakat

Banking & Finance

Latest Mumtalakat DevelopmentsAI Insights

Bahrain's sovereign wealth fund, Mumtalakat Holding, has taken strategic steps to enhance its interests and influence in the automotive and climate sectors. Mumtalakat recently entered a non-binding agreement with Abu Dhabi-backed CYVN Holdings to sell a stake in McLaren Group, which aims to strengthen the carmaker with additional capital and expertise, particularly in the electric vehicles sector. This deal, if finalised, would focus on expanding McLaren's range of high-performance vehicles 1.

Earlier last year, Mumtalakat became the sole owner of McLaren Group, following the completion of a capital reorganisation plan 5. This ownership change is expected to support McLaren's long-term business goals by simplifying its share structure and governance 4.

Beyond the automotive sector, Mumtalakat is anchoring a 750 million US dollar climate fund managed by Investcorp. This fund, launched during Cop28 in the UAE, intends to invest in international companies focused on decarbonisation and climate solutions across various sectors, including building, transportation, and agriculture 2.

Mumtalakat’s robust strategy extends to fostering trade relationships and investment opportunities, with expectations of significant economic benefits as part of a broader push amidst accelerating GCC-UK trade talks 3.

Mumtalakat Overview

Bahrain Mumtalakat Holding Company BSC – or Mumtalakat – is Bahrain’s sovereign wealth fund, established by royal decree in 2006 and wholly owned by the Bahraini government.

Mumtalakat invests in assets in most sectors including education, aviation, healthcare, consumer and financial services, industrial manufacturing, real estate, tourism and logistics.

It does not invest in oil or gas.

Initial investments were primarily in Bahrain, with just 3 percent abroad, but since then they risen to over a third, covering the Middle East, North Africa, Europe and the US, with both minority and majority stakes.

It now holds stakes in more than 60 companies and has assets under management worth roughly $18 billion.

Mumtalakat holds stakes in some of Bahrain’s largest companies, including National Bank of Bahrain, Gulf Hotels Group, Bahrain Telecommunications Company (Beyon) and Aluminium Bahrain (Alba).

Further afield Mumtalakat owns stakes in companies including the British carmaker McLaren Group, Singapore Gulf Bank, Italian Racing Force, Germany’s FAI Aviation Group and Kuwait’s Gulf Cryo.

Mumtalakat News

Alba, which was launched in 1971 and employs 3,200 people, is the oldest aluminium smelter in the Middle East

Alba and Ma’aden end merger discussions

Aluminium Bahrain (Alba) and the Saudi Arabian Mining Company (Ma’aden) have ended talks over a merger of the two Gulf manufacturing giants. Discussions had been taking place since last year and it had been hoped that a deal could be completed in the first quarter of 2025, according to Alba’s chief executive, Ali Al Baqali. […]

Alba Ma’aden delay aluminium

Alba and Ma’aden delay merger to Q2 2025

The deadline on a potential merger between Aluminium Bahrain (Alba) and subsidiaries of Saudi Arabia’s Ma’aden has been extended into the second quarter of 2025. It had been hoped that a deal between the two manufacturing giants could be completed in the first quarter, according to Alba’s chief executive, Ali Al Baqali. But a note […]

Saudi sport sponsorship

Saudi Arabia expands global reach with 900 sports deals

Saudi Arabia’s vast number of sports sponsorship deals, now in excess of 900, are part of the kingdom’s strategy to diversify away from oil but their long-term success will not be known for some time to come, experts have said. Play the Game, a publicly funded sports ethics institute in Denmark, compiled a list of […]

Bahrain airport city

Bahrain to tender for ‘airport city’ in early 2025

Bahrain will issue tenders early next year to build a new “airport city” based around the existing Bahrain International Airport. The project will include commercial and residential development, according to Mohamed Yousif AlBinfalah, CEO of Bahrain Airport Company. “We have a significant amount of space that will be coming to the market soon for development,” […]

People queueing to use a National Bank of Bahrain ATM in Manama. The merger with Bank of Bahrain and Kuwait was announced this year

Bahrain bank merger to complete in 2025

A merger between National Bank of Bahrain (NBB) and Bank of Bahrain and Kuwait (BBK) is expected to be completed in 2025. Plans to join the two banks were announced to the Bahrain Bourse earlier this year and preliminary proceedings started this month. “Considering that we are almost at the end of this year, I […]

Audi Qatar F1

Audi slams brakes on Qatari F1 buyout rumours

Carmaker Audi has said its F1 team is not for sale, scuppering online rumours that the company was preparing to sell to Qatar’s QIA sovereign wealth fund. “We do not engage in speculation. The team is not for sale,” an Audi F1 spokesperson told AGBI on Tuesday. Qatar already holds a major stake in VW, […]

Based on the offer price range, Lulu is set to list with a market capitalisation of between AED20.04bn and AED21.07bn

High demand leads Lulu to upsize IPO stake to 30%

Lulu Retail Holdings has increased the size of its initial public offering (IPO) by 5 percent to 30 percent to potentially raise AED6.32 billion ($1.72 billion) on the Abu Dhabi Securities Exchange (ADX) following high demand from investors. The retail chain operator in the Middle East initially offered a 25 percent stake sale. The total […]

Bahrain's Minister of Finance and National Economy, Sheikh Salman bin Khalifa al-Khalifa speaks during a financial conference in Manama, Bahrain February 27, 2019. REUTERS/Hamad I Mohammed

Bahrain’s Mumtalakat prizes local investment over global

Bahrain’s multi-billion dollar sovereign wealth fund Mumtalakat is looking closer to home for investments, prioritising local over international opportunities. Shaikh Salman bin Khalifa Al Khalifa, minister of finance and national economy at Mumtalakat, said: “What we have found is the most compelling investment opportunities, the highest return on equity investments, are increasingly at home or […]

Mumtalakat, Bahrain's sovereign wealth fund, took full ownership of McLaren Group in March

Abu Dhabi plans to buy stake in British carmaker McLaren

Abu Dhabi-backed CYVN Holdings has entered a non-binding agreement with Mumtalakat Holding, Bahrain’s sovereign wealth fund, to buy a stake in British carmaker McLaren Group, with the potential to take ownership of its automotive business. The partnership aims to bolster McLaren with additional capital, advanced engineering expertise and technology, particularly in electric vehicles (EVs), the companies […]

Mumtalakat's investment aims to support the expansion of Racing Force’s helmet factory in Bahrain

Mumtalakat invests in Italian motorsport safety products

Mumtalakat, Bahrain’s sovereign wealth fund, has invested in Italian Racing Force, the parent company of Racing Force Group (RFG), makers of motorsport safety products. The investment, made through its wholly owned subsidiary, aims to support the expansion of Racing Force’s helmet factory in Bahrain. Shaikh Abdulla bin Khalifa Al Khalifa, CEO of Mumtalakat, said that collaborating […]