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UAE’s Mubadala emerges as top sovereign wealth fund spender in 2024, invests Dh107 billion

In October 2024, Abu Dhabi was dubbed the 'capital of capital' as it overtook Oslo to become the richest city globally

Published: Wed 1 Jan 2025, 5:04 PM

Updated: Wed 1 Jan 2025, 8:30 PM

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Photo: AFP file

Photo: AFP file

The UAE’s Mubadala emerged as the top investor among sovereign wealth funds (SWFs) globally in 2024, investing $29.2 billion (Dh107 billion) — up from $17.5 billion in 2023 — to expand its portfolio.

According to an annual report released by Global SWF on Wednesday, Mubadala deployed 67 per cent additional capital in 2024 compared to the previous year across 52 deals, as the Abu Dhabi-based SWF continues to expand across regions and industries.

The Abu Dhabi Investment Authority (Adia) was the largest SWF in the Mena region in 2024 with $1.11 trillion assets (Dh4 trillion) followed by Kuwait Investment Authority, Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund (PIF), Qatar Investment Authority (QIA), Investment Corporation of Dubai (ICD), Mubadala, ADQ, and others. Total assets under the management of Mena sovereign wealth funds stood at $5.356 trillion at the end of 2024.

In October 2024, Abu Dhabi was dubbed the “capital of capital” as it overtook Oslo to become the richest city globally, thanks to its $1.7 trillion in assets managed by various SWFs. The UAE-headquartered SWFs command over $2 trillion in assets under management at the end of 2024.

$13 trillion worth of assets

Sovereign Wealth Funds reached a historic milestone in 2024, managing $13 trillion in assets, with the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) accounting for 38 per cent of the total and Southeast Asia holding 10 per cent.

Additionally, two countries that dominate are China with 20 per cent of total assets and Norway with 14 per cent.

Diego López, founder and managing director of Global SWF, said financial markets have shown remarkable resilience, reaching record highs.

“Against this backdrop, and supported by sustained high oil prices, Sovereign Wealth Funds have, for the first time in history, surpassed $13 trillion (Dh47.71 trillion) in assets under management (AuM), while public pension funds have reached an unprecedented $25 trillion,” he said.

Regional preferences among state-owned investors (SOIs) varied widely. While some Gulf funds displayed a slight bias toward emerging markets, including their domestic economies, developed economies remained the top choice for most sovereign investors. The standout markets in 2024 were the UK, Australia, Italy, and Germany, although India, China, and Indonesia also continued to gain prominence within the portfolios of sovereign investors.

Global SWF said SOIs increased their investment activity in 2024, despite the number of deals remaining relatively unchanged from 2023. The average transaction size rose to $0.37 billion, reflecting strong demand for large infrastructure and credit deals. Compared to 2023, investments by SWFs grew by 7 per cent to $136.1 billion across 358 transactions.

In terms of industries, SWFs and public pension funds (PPFs) increased their allocations to real assets, which together accounted for over 50 per cent of total capital deployed, despite a modest correction in the real estate sector.

Healthcare, industrials, and consumer sectors saw declines in both deal value and volume, while technology experienced a strong recovery despite broader challenges in the venture capital space.

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