Abu Dhabi assesses plans for sovereign funds in turbulent year

From sovereign wealth funds to Abu Dhabi National Oil Co., the UAE’s largest investment institutions came under review this week as officials assessed performance and future investment plans in the middle of a turbulent year marked by the Iran war.

The meeting of the Investment Affairs Council on Monday to review first-quarter earnings, recent deals and projects slated for later this year, was led by Sheikh Tahnoon bin Zayed, the UAE National Security Advisor and chairman of some of Abu Dhabi’s largest firms and funds.

Among the entities under review were the Abu Dhabi Investment Authority, Mubadala, L’Imad and ADNOC, along with major investments executed since the start of the year and ongoing transactions across regional and international markets.

The meeting in Abu Dhabi was attended by Dr. Sultan Al Jaber, Minister of Industry and Advanced Technology and Managing Director and Group CEO of ADNOC; Khaldoon Al Mubarak, Managing Director and Group CEO of Mubadala; Sheikh Hamed bin Zayed, Managing Director of ADIA, and Jassem Al Zaabi, Chairman of the Abu Dhabi Department of Finance.

Also present were Sheikh Mansour bin Zayed, Vice President, Deputy Prime Minister and Chairman of the Presidential Court, and Sheikh Khaled bin Mohamed, Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi and Chairman of the Abu Dhabi Executive Council. 

A new report by Bain & Co. shows that Middle East sovereign wealth funds face major challenges while expanding their global reach. Over the next decade, the funds will have to adapt to such challenges as higher interest rates, geopolitical fragmentation, technological disruption, and the global energy transition, Arab News reports, citing the Bain report.