Analysis Finance The KIA maintains its low profile approach – for now Kuwait Investment Authority (KIA) is not only the oldest Gulf sovereign wealth fund, but also the most opaque. It publishes little information about its assets and usually invests abroad through asset managers rather than directly. Its low-profile approach contrasts with the likes of Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund (PIF), Abu Dhabi’s Mubadala and the Qatar […] June 9, 2025
Agriculture PIF-backed Olam Agri raises nearly $2bn Singapore-based agribusiness Olam Agri Holdings, partially owned by Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund (PIF), has secured $1.85 billion in financing to support its business goals. The dual-tranche conventional and Islamic facility was raised by Olam Global Agri and Olam Global Agri Treasury Pte, two subsidiaries of Olam Agri — which sources, processes, trades and distributes […] June 3, 2025
Finance Mubadala’s $1bn sukuk order book oversubscribed five times Abu Dhabi sovereign wealth fund Mubadala has sold $1 billion in 10-year US dollar-denominated Islamic bonds, or sukuk, in its first debt sale of the year, news service IFR said on Wednesday. Acting through the Mamoura Diversified Global Holding debt vehicle, Mubadala priced the bonds at 60 basis points (bps) over US treasuries, narrower than […] May 29, 2025
Oil & Gas Saudi Aramco seeks funds through three-part bond sale Oil giant Saudi Aramco wants to raise funds through a dollar-denominated three-part bond sale, fixed income news service IFR reported on Tuesday. The debt deal, which is expected to be priced later in the day, will be benchmark-sized, which is usually considered to be at least $500 million. Earlier this month, Aramco reported a 4.6 percent drop in […] May 27, 2025
Tech Qatar-backed Builder.ai collapses with sales in doubt A British technology startup funded by the Qatar Investment Authority (QIA) has collapsed after an internal investigation identified potentially bogus sales. In 2023 the QIA sovereign wealth fund led a $250 million late-stage funding round for Builder.ai and, together with Microsoft, was one of its biggest investors. The company raised more than $450 million over its […] May 23, 2025
Banking and Finance QIA approved to buy stake in leading Chinese asset manager Qatar’s $526 billion sovereign wealth fund has received approval to acquire a 10 percent stake in China Asset Management Co. It is a rare Gulf investment into one of the country’s largest mutual fund houses as Doha walks a diplomatic tightrope between Washington and Beijing. The green light from the China Securities Regulatory Commission was […] May 23, 2025
Economy Owner of Emirates Airline reports climb in profit The Investment Corporation of Dubai (ICD) said profit and the value of its assets rose last year, buoyed by performance in its aviation, real estate and banking portfolio. Net income climbed 6 percent to AED53.2 billion ($14.5 billion) and the value of its assets more than 10 percent to AED1.47 trillion, the sovereign wealth fund […] May 21, 2025
Markets Mubadala’s US portfolio hit by GlobalFoundries slump Abu Dhabi sovereign wealth fund Mubadala Investment Co suffered a paper loss of $2.7 billion on its majority stake in US semiconductor maker GlobalFoundries in the first quarter, US regulatory filings show. GlobalFoundries’ stock price has fallen by about half from its March 2022 peak, extending its decline this year. This lowered the value of […] May 20, 2025
EXCLUSIVE Giga-projects PIF plans $100bn ‘Project Paradise’ Saudi Arabia’s $925 billion Public Investment Fund is drawing up plans for a $100 billion development in Riyadh, even as it reins in spending across some of its flagship projects, according to sources. The mixed-use project, known internally as “Project Paradise”, is in the early planning stage and is expected to be located southwest of […] May 19, 2025
Analysis Finance Qatar’s $526bn wealth fund bets big on technology Qatar Airways captured the headlines this week with its near $100 billion order for Boeing aircraft during US President Donald Trump’s Gulf visit. But behind the scenes the country’s $526 billion sovereign Qatar Investment Authority (QIA) is making investments that could prove to be of greater strategic importance to the country, with an increasing focus […] May 19, 2025
Markets Saudi Arabia trims bets on US tech stocks Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund (PIF) rejigged its US equities portfolio during a tumultuous first quarter for Stateside stocks, expanding its direct investment in Amazon but trimming its bets on some of the other so-called Magnificent Seven technology companies. PIF has submitted filings to the US market regulator each financial quarter from 2020 onwards when […] May 18, 2025
Markets Gulf sovereign wealth funds tap secondaries market The Middle East’s sovereign wealth funds are using the surging secondaries investment market to take strategic stakes in emerging technologies, experts have told AGBI. A secondaries investment is the acquisition of interests in already formed private market funds or a portfolio of direct investments from existing investors. Global secondaries transactions rose almost 50 percent last […] May 16, 2025
Analysis Banking and Finance US treasuries: why it’s buy, buy, buy for the UAE as Saudi sells Saudi Arabia and the UAE are following divergent investment strategies around US government bonds, which have long been a safe haven for sovereign and institutional investors worldwide. The two countries are among the world’s top 20 biggest holders of the bonds, with a combined value of almost $250 billion. The UAE acquired almost $43 billion […] May 9, 2025
Banking and Finance Abu Dhabi’s Mubadala reveals 34% rise in 2024 spending Mubadala deployed AED119 billion ($32 billion) of capital last year, a rise of nearly 34 percent on 2023, the Abu Dhabi sovereign wealth fund has revealed in its latest earnings report. The fund, which is thought to have been the world’s most active sovereign investor in 2024, has not released data on its annual revenues […] May 8, 2025
Analysis Trade Gulf funds weigh risk and reward in Trump’s new trade world order Gulf sovereign wealth funds, including Abu Dhabi’s Mubadala and Saudi Arabia’s Neom Investment Fund, see both risk and opportunity in the heightened global trade tensions linked to US tariffs. “We know what an economic recession looks like – here we’re dealing with something slightly different,” said Oscar Fahlgren, chief investment officer at Mubadala’s alternative asset […] May 7, 2025
Banking and Finance Bahrain’s Mumtalakat reports biggest profit in its history Bahrain’s sovereign wealth fund Mumtalakat has posted the biggest profit in its 19-year history, reversing a loss in 2023, according to the Bahrain News Agency. Its consolidated net profit reached BD363 million ($963 million) in 2024, versus a net loss of BD497 million the year before, the state-run agency reported. “The past year marked a […] May 7, 2025
Opinion Renewable Energy GCC states bet big on renewables in Central Asia Green energy deals are the foundations for closer trade relationships May 6, 2025
Banking and Finance PIF raises $1.25bn from year’s second debt sale Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund (PIF) has sold $1.25 billion in 7-year sukuk, tapping the bond market for the second time this year. The sovereign wealth fund was able to lower the price guidance to 110 basis points (bps) over US Treasuries from 140 bps over the same benchmark released earlier in the day after […] May 1, 2025
Markets iMENA Group plans IPO with backing of PIF’s Sanabil A unit of Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund (PIF) is investing in iMENA Group as the technology company seeks to raise $135 million from investors and prepare for an initial public offering. Riyadh-based Sanabil Investments – which is owned by $940 billion PIF – made the investment among other financiers including venture capital firm FJ […] April 29, 2025
Real Estate Kuwait wealth fund sues over London tower project Kuwait Investment Authority, the world’s fifth-biggest sovereign wealth fund, is suing global investment company Axa Investment Managers in connection with a planned tower in London’s financial district that risks blocking light to a KIA building. St Martins Property, the investment authority’s property development unit, is suing Hygie, a special purpose vehicle controlled by Axa Investment […] April 29, 2025
Aviation Saudi aircraft lessor AviLease secures $1.5bn credit facility Saudi Public Investment Fund unit Aircraft Leasing Company (AviLease) has finalised a $1.5 billion credit facility to fund aircraft purchases and business expansion, a local newspaper reported. The three-year facility, which was oversubscribed, garnered interest from 25 international and domestic banks, Arab News reported, citing AviLease CEO Edward O’Byrne. “Together with our existing revolver of […] April 28, 2025
Video length: 02:01 Opinion Transport Is the DB12 the supercar to lead Aston Martin’s recovery? The model could be a turning point in the fortunes of the iconic brand April 25, 2025
