Wynn faces pressure over UAE casino debut after Iran attacks
Investors in Wynn Resorts will be looking for answers this week about whether the Las Vegas-based casino operator will delay next year’s planned opening of its $5.1 billion UAE project because of the Iran war.
The company issued a statement in March that the conflict had briefly interrupted construction and that some employees were being offered to work abroad.
Now – after the UAE was attacked again this week by Iranian drones – Wynn is contemplating postponing its target opening in the spring of 2027, Bloomberg reports. Company executives will be questioned by investment bank analysts on Thursday when Wynn reports earnings.
The Wynn Al Marjan Island has been positioned as a catalyst for a wider investment boom in the northern emirate of Ras Al Khaimah, attracting luxury developers, hotel operators and retailers to the northern emirate. The resort is planned to include more than 1,500 rooms, a marina, shopping district and the Gulf’s first regulated gaming venue.
The UAE has pressed ahead with legalized gaming despite concerns elsewhere in the Gulf about casinos. Wynn rival MGM Grand is building a hotel in Dubai.
The government created a regulatory authority in 2023 to license casinos, lotteries, sports betting, online gaming, and integrated resorts. Wynn Resorts received the country’s first commercial gaming license in 2024.
The Daily Circuit: MGX’s $10B AI bet + PIF gaming shuffle
In today’s Daily Circuit, we’re reporting on Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund shuffling its gaming stakes, AD Ports accelerating its acquisition strategy, Mubadala boosting its Bitcoin holdings and Egypt preparing for a new raft of IPOs. But first, MGX’s $10 billion AI bet.
After plowing billions of dollars into Anthropic, OpenAI and xAI, Abu Dhabi’s MGX fund is rapidly emerging as one of the world’s most active investors in artificial intelligence.
The emirate-owned vehicle, barely two years old, is now prepared to deploy as much as $10 billion a year to reach dominant positions in the global AI industry even while the market is full of uncertainty, MGX Chief Investment Officer Ali Osman tells Bloomberg. “We are in the business of the not-obvious,” he said.
The fund is targeting more than $100 billion in assets under management, positioning MGX as a central pillar of the UAE’s push to convert its oil wealth into long-term technological influence.
MGX moved into OpenAI in 2024, participating in a major funding round and later joining with the ChatGPT maker on its multibillion-dollar Stargate AI infrastructure venture.
Last month, MGX joined a massive fundraising for Elon Musk’s xAI, alongside investors including Nvidia and Cisco. Last week, the fund emerged as a co-lead investor in Anthropic’s latest multibillion-dollar financing round, completing a rare trifecta by backing the three rivals.
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📰 Developing Stories
FINAL OFFER
Warner Bros. Discovery has tentatively opened a crack in the door for a Gulf-backed buyout by David Ellison’s Paramount, asking for a “best and final proposal” for the entertainment and media Goliath, while continuing to pursue its $82.7 billion deal with Netflix. Paramount, which submitted an amended offer last week, said on Tuesday that it welcomed the chance to have “good faith and constructive discussions.” Paramount has aggressively pursued WBD, launching multiple successive offers backed by various configurations of Gulf sovereign wealth funds. In December the newly-formed Abu Dhabi state investment vehicle L’imad Holding Co. joined the fray by backing a $108 billion hostile offer.
EXPO EXPOSED
A data breach that exposed identity documents of high-level attendees at Abu Dhabi Finance Week 2025 has been secured and was limited in scope, according to organizers. Scans of more than 700 documents, including passports and state ID cards, were discovered to be accessible online via an unprotected cloud storage server, uncovered by a freelance security expert, the Financial Times reports. Those exposed included former White House communications director and investor Anthony Scaramucci, billionaire hedge fund manager Alan Howard and former British prime minister Lord David Cameron. Organizers blamed a vulnerability at a third-party vendor. “The environment was secured immediately upon identification, and our initial review indicates that access activity was limited to the researcher that identified the issue,” an unnamed representative of ADFW told The National.
💲 Sovereign Circuit
Mubadala: The Abu Dhabi sovereign wealth fund boosted its stake in BlackRock’s iShares Bitcoin Trust to 12.7 million shares worth $630.6 million in Q4 2025, a 46% increase in its holdings. The cryptocurrency has fallen more than 40% from its all-time peak in October.
L’imad Holding: AD Ports Group has grown its global network to 36 ports and terminals as the Abu Dhabi-backed operator accelerates international acquisitions and logistics investments.
Public Investment Fund: The Saudi sovereign wealth fund transferred its roughly $3 billion, 11-million-share stake in gaming studio Take-Two Interactive to subsidiary Savvy Games Group ahead of the launch of Grand Theft Auto VI.
The Sovereign Fund of Egypt: Egypt is preparing to transfer stakes in about 60 state-owned companies to its sovereign wealth fund ahead of potential EGX listings, part of Cairo’s broader push to attract private investment and ease fiscal pressure.
Qatar Investment Authority: Hamad Al-Khater, Qatar’s Airways’ new CEO, told Bloomberg he intends to prioritize relations with Airbus, which has demonstrated that “they’ll be able to deliver” on their promises.
↪↩ Closing Circuit
🧪 Fertilizer Pivot: UAE fertilizer producer Fertiglobe is targeting increased sales to Europe as the EU tightens curbs on Russian supplies, CEO Ahed El-Hoshy told Bloomberg.
📦 Logistics Partners: Saudi Ports Authority and MEDLOG, the logistics arm of global container shipper MSC, inaugurated a $40 million integrated logistics center at King Abdulaziz Port in Dammam.
💻 AI Risks: Palo Alto Networks is is acquiring Israeli cybersecurity startup Koi for an estimated $400 million, targeting emerging risks from autonomous AI agents on corporate systems, Calcalist reports.
🗣 Circuit Chatter
🔴 Red Planet: The UAE Space Agency has extended the Emirates Mars Mission through 2028, allowing its Hope Probe to continue scientific observations of the planet’s atmosphere beyond its original timeline.
🚢Treading Water: Iran and Russia plan to conduct joint navy drills in the Gulf of Oman and northern Indian Ocean tomorrow, raising further security concerns after Iran temporarily closed the Strait of Hormuz for several hours on Tuesday.
🛢️ Friendly Handover: Iraq’s cabinet approved an amicable settlement with Lukoil over the transfer of operations of one of the world’s largest oilfields to the state-run Basra Oil Company, following U.S. sanctions on the Russian energy giant.
🌍 Power Circuit
Sheikh Mansour bin Zayed, UAE Vice President, Deputy Prime Minister and Chairman of the Presidential Court, visited the Ministry of Human Resources and Emiratisation on Tuesday to review strategic plans for the future of the nation’s labour system.
Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman al-Thani, Qatar’s Prime Minister, arrived in Venezuela, where he was greeted by Foreign Minister Yvan Gil on Tuesday.
Lt. Gen. Sheikh Saif bin Zayed, UAE Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Interior, honored the winners of the seventh edition of the Minister of Interior’s Excellence Award during a ceremony held at the Emirates Palace in Abu Dhabi on Tuesday.
➿ On the Circuit
Michael Doersam, CFO of Emirates, said he plans to step down in June after a decade in the role. The Dubai-based airline said it will announce a successor “in due course.”
Bandar Alkhorayef, Saudi Arabia’s Minister of Industry and Mineral Resources and Chairman of the Saudi Authority for Industrial Cities and Technology Zones, launched a package of capital projects on Monday valued at $810 million.
Damien Drapwas appointed Chief Operating Officer, Haresh Bajaj as Chief Product Officer and Denis Agiev as Chief Technology Officer of Prypco, a UAE-based PropTech platform.
Morgan Parker, Vice Chairman of the management committee at Qiddiya Investment Co., spoke to Arab News about what drives Saudi Arabia’s huge entertainment project. “At its heart, Qiddiya City is about play,” Parker said. “Imagine a whole city dedicated to facilitating those experiences,” Parker said. “That’s what we’re building.”
🎶 Culture Circuit
🧑🎨 Fixer-Upper: The Triumph of David, an 18-meter-long painted leather artwork depicting a royal procession and inspired by the biblical story of David and Goliath, is now on display at Louvre Abu Dhabi, following a painstaking two-year restoration project. The origins of the 17th-century artwork, which was last displayed on the walls of a Parisian hotel, are uncertain, but it is stylistically linked to artists associated with the Dutch master Rembrandt, The National reports.
📷 Photo of the Day
A Saudi observer uses a telescope to search for the crescent moon, to mark the start date of the Muslim holy month of Ramadan, at the Majmaah University Astronomical Observatory north of Riyadh, on Tuesday. (Fayez Nureldine / AFP via Getty Images)
📅 Circuit Calendar
March 25-27, Miami. FII Miami 2026. A summit on disruptive technology and investment trends hosted by the Public Investment Fund’s Future Investment Initiative Institute. Faena Hotel, Miami Beach.
March 31-April 2, Dubai. Arab Media Summit. The annual gathering brings together Arab media personnel, influencers and organizations. DWTC.
April 6-13, Dubai. Quantum Innovation Summit. Part of Global Quantum Week, focusing on quantum technology and applications. Grand Hyatt.
April 6-7, Riyadh. Real Estate Supply Chain Forum. Transforming the real estate supply chain landscape. Mandarin Oriental.
April 7-9, Dubai. Middle East Energy. Discover what’s new in energy. Dubai World Trade Centre.
April 7-9, Abu Dhabi. Future Health. Bringing together global leaders in government, science, technology and investment. ADNEC.
April 11-20, Abu Dhabi. Abu Dhabi International Book Fair. Fostering collaboration between regional publishing sectors and creative industries. ADNEC.
April 20-22, Riyadh. Future Aviation Forum. Exploring the future of air transport, sustainability, advanced air mobility, and artificial intelligence. King Abdulaziz International Conference Center.
April 13-16, Riyadh. LEAP 2026. Global tech event covering AI, 5G and startups. RECC Malham.
April 21-23, Dubai. UITP Summit 2026. A high-level event for the public transport sector looking at the future of urban mobility. Dubai World Trade Centre
April 24-26, Abu Dhabi. Middle East Film & Comic Con. Featuring some of the world’s biggest brands in film, TV, sci-fi, animation, manga, comics and collectibles.
April 29-30, Dubai. TOKEN2049 Dubai. A global gathering for the crypto ecosystem. Madinat Jumeirah.
UAE’s TrueWin, Dream Island online betting platforms go live
Momentum, the company behind the UAE’s only licensed lottery, has launched two online betting and casino platforms, TrueWin and Dream Island, Arabian Gulf Business Insights reports.
Both sites offer casino games and sports betting and are already live.
Their launch comes as the UAE weighs a historic policy shift that could generate an estimated $6.6 billion in annual gaming revenue.
Both TrueWin and Dream Island were registered in March 2023, several months before the General Commercial Gaming Regulatory Authority was established.
It comes as the UAE Lottery announced on Tuesday that it would be revamping its flagship Lucky Draw, just weeks after handing out its first Dh100 million ($27 million) grand prize.
Saudi Arabia splits with IOC over staging Esports Olympics
Saudi Arabia and the International Olympic Committee have “mutually” ended a deal to jointly hold the Olympic Esports Games.
Instead, the IOC and the kingdom will pursue their own esports ambitions separately, Bloomberg reports.
The 12-year agreement, signed last year, was supposed to see Saudi Arabia host the inaugural Esports Olympics, a part of its ambition to be a global hub for gaming.
The kingdom held its second Esports World Cup over the summer, attracting more than 2,000 professional players from over 100 countries, and its Public Investment Fund has since signed a blockbuster $55 billion deal to take gaming company Electronic Arts private.
Dubai to unveil first gaming pavilion at Germany’s Gamescom
Dubai expects to turn heads at Germany’s Gamescom 2025 next week when it unveils the first gaming pavilion sponsored by a Middle East government.
The emirate wants to use the world’s biggest gaming event to showcase its $1 billion effort to rank among the world’s top 10 gaming hubs by 2033, Arabian Business reports.
“Our presence at Gamescom underscores the strength of an ecosystem that combines innovation, education, advanced technology, and talent development,” Sheikha Latifa bint Mohammed Al Maktoum, Chairperson of Dubai Culture, said in a statement.
Some 350 gaming companies have set up shop in Dubai, 12% of them part of major global tech firms, the news site said.
Wynn resorts is in the midst of building the UAE’s first casino in the emirate of Ras Al Khaimah, which is due to open in 2027.
UAE Lottery launches new digital games, eyeing sector expansion
The UAE Lottery has introduced two new digital games offering prizes of up to $340,000, as it seeks to expand its product offering within the country’s nascent regulated gaming sector.
The launch of Marble Run and Lucky Lagoon, the new titles, overseen by the General Commercial Gaming Regulatory Authority, reflect a broader state-backed effort to formalize lottery and gaming activities, The National reports.
The expansion marks the first significant product rollout since the Lottery was licensed in 2023, and coincides with a multi-year partnership between UAE Lottery operator Game LLC and U.S.-based EQL Games.
The move signals growing investor interest and regulatory confidence in the UAE’s evolving commercial gaming landscape.
Wynn Resorts to outline plans after getting UAE gaming license
Wynn Resorts will spell out its plans in Las Vegas tomorrow for the UAE’s first gaming location, offering a progress report on the $3.9 billion venture that is under construction and set to open in 2027.
The briefing for investors follows the granting to Wynn last week of a commercial gaming operator’s license by the General Commercial Gaming Regulatory Authority for its Al Marjan Island hotel and casino resort off the coast of Ras Al Khaimah.
The UAE has long been seen as a potential regional gaming center because of its oil wealth, its growing number of high-net-worth residents and its recognition of one of the Middle East’s top tourist destinations.
MGM Resorts International said last month that it had applied for a gaming license for a property it’s building in Abu Dhabi.
Esports sector to contribute $13.3 billion to Saudi GDP by 2030
Saudi Arabia’s push to become a regional center for gaming is paying off, with the esports sector expected to contribute $13.3 billion to the kingdom’s GDP by 2030, according to a new report from PwC Middle East and the Saudi Esports Federation.
Interest in esports is growing across the region, with gaming revenues for the Middle East and North Africa reaching $7.2 billion in 2023.
Saudi Arabia is preparing to host the first Olympic Esports Games from next year, after successfully holding its inaugural Esports World Cup at Riyadh’s Boulevard City over the past two months.
The event, in which an estimated 2,500 gamers competed for a prize pool of $62.5 million, concluded on Sunday with the Saudi Falcons team declared as champions.
Saudi Esports Cup to wrap up as business of gaming grows
After an eight-week gaming extravaganza, Saudi Arabia’s inaugural Esports World Cup at Riyadh’s Boulevard City will wrap up this weekend, with four final tournaments and a high-octane closing ceremony planned for Sunday night.
The champions of fighting game Tekken 8 will be crowned this evening, followed by finals for battle royale shooter PUBG, vehicular soccer hybrid Rocket League and racing game ESL R1 on Sunday.
The matches will conclude a marathon event that has featured 22 tournaments across 21 titles, with an estimated 2,500 gamers slogging it out for their share in the $60 million prize pool.
Hosting the biggest event in esports history has put Saudi Arabia front and center in the global gaming market. Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, a fan of the Call of Duty zombie military game, has earmarked $38 billion from the Public Investment Fund to help spur on the local industry, with the aim of attracting 250 gaming companies and studios to the kingdom.
While the competition wraps up, Saudi leadership will be turning their focus to the business end of gaming, with the New Global Sports Conference kicking off tomorrow.
More than 60 speakers and 1,200 delegates from the esports, gaming and entertainment industries will converge at Riyadh’s Four Seasons, with the kingdom’s plans to host the Olympic Esports Games from next year high on the agenda.
UAE grants first lottery license in key step for gaming reform
The UAE has granted its first lottery license, a key step in establishing a regulated commercial gaming sector in the emirates, where construction of the Gulf’s first casino resort is underway in Ras Al Khaimah.
Approval of the new UAE Lottery, to be run by commercial gaming operator The Game LLC, was announced on Sunday by the General Commercial Gaming Regulatory Authority, a federal body which was set up late last year to oversee gaming activities in the country, including lottery, online gaming, sports wagering and casino resorts.
“The launch of the UAE Lottery is a pivotal event that not only marks the establishment of a disciplined world-class regulatory framework for lottery activities but also underscores our commitment to nurturing a secure and enriched commercial gaming environment in the UAE,” Jim Murren, chairman of the GCGRA, said in a statement.
The new lottery license comes after existing raffle-style draws in the Emirates, including the popular weekly draw by Mahzooz, were required to pause business in January while the GCGRA developed its framework for gaming regulation.
It comes amid anticipation of Las Vegas casino operator Wynn Resorts’ $4 billion development on the Marjan islands, about one hour’s drive north of Dubai, which is expected to open in 2027.
