L’Imad takes over ADQ in shake-up of Abu Dhabi wealth funds

Abu Dhabi is consolidating the assets of ADQ, its third-largest sovereign wealth fund, under its newly-created investment vehicle L’Imad Holding.

L’Imad, which was launched late last year, will now hold a portfolio of 25 investment companies and platforms, with more than 250 subsidiaries including Etihad Airways, Etihad Rail, Abu Dhabi Ports, McLaren, Louis Dreyfus, PureHealth, Modon Properties, Wio Bank and Taqa.

The decision to create another investment giant is one of the most significant overhauls of Gulf sovereign funds in years and comes after it was announced on Thursday that Mohamed Alsuwaidi would step down as CEO of ADQ after seven years to take up a new role at alternative investment manager Lunate.

Sheikh Khaled bin Mohamed, Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi and Chairman of the Abu Dhabi Executive Council, was appointed Chairman of L’Imad in January, with Jassem Al Zaabi, Chairman of the Abu Dhabi Department of Finance and Vice Chairman of the UAE Central Bank, appointed as Managing Director and CEO.

The resolution to roll ADQ’s $263 billion in assets into L’Imad was issued by the Supreme Council for Financial and Economic Affairs, the body which oversees Abu Dhabi’s principal sovereign funds, including the Abu Dhabi Investment Authority, Mubadala and L’Imad, as well as state oil company ADNOC.

ADQ, which was set up in 2018, quickly became one of the world’s fastest-growing investors. It is chaired by Sheikh Tahnoon bin Zayed, the UAE National Security Advisor who oversees a broad swath of Abu Dhabi investment entities, including ADIA and AI firm MGX. 

L’Imad first made headlines in October, when it bought a $7 billion stake in real estate investor Modon from IHC Real Estate Holding and Alpha Dhabi Holding, both subsidiaries of Sheikh Tahnoon’s International Holding Co.

Since then, it joined the fray in the Warner Bros. bidding war, backing a hostile offer for the entertainment giant from David Ellison’s Paramount, and took over ownership of McLaren Automotive from another state investment firm.

ADQ chief Mohamed Alsuwaidi steps down to steer Lunate

Mohamed Alsuwaidi has stepped down as CEO of Abu Dhabi sovereign wealth fund ADQ to take up a new role at three-year-old Lunate, marking a major leadership change among the emirate’s state-linked investment firms.

Alsuwaidi, who spent seven years at ADQ, has been appointed Executive Chairman and Managing Partner at Lunate, a unit of Chimera Investment LLC, which is controlled by UAE National Security Advisor Sheikh Tahnoon bin Zayed.

“Building ADQ from inception into a globally significant investment institution has been one of the most meaningful chapters of my professional life,” Alsuwaidi said in a press release.

Lunate, which was launched in 2023 as an independent alternative investment manager backed by Abu Dhabi capital, manages about $115 billion in assets and invests across public and private markets.

The firm has quickly gained prominence since its start by teaming up with some of Wall Street’s biggest banks, investing in OpenAI and buying a stake in Brevan Howard Asset Management.