Mubadala Capital has launched its first MENA-focused tech investment fund to boost UAE and the MENA region’s growing start-up scene.
The funds include a US$150 million (AED 550 million) “fund of funds” program, to be invested into funds supporting the Abu Dhabi-based Hub71 ecosystem, and into startups working with Hub71 for regional expansion and growth.
Ibrahim Ajami, Head of Ventures at Mubadala Capital, said: “After ten years of investing in tech companies around the world, the time has come to leverage the experience and expertise we’ve gained for the benefit of our home market. The MENA funds will drive the economic development of Abu Dhabi by stimulating tech investment activity. There’s a huge amount of untapped potential in the UAE and the wider region and we are on the right path to foster more home-grown innovations, attract exceptional talent and accelerate the evolution of a flourishing tech industry in the Emirate.”
With a total of US$250 million (AED 918 million), the Mubadala MENA tech investment funds is part of Mubadala Capital $225 billion asset base and businesses that include private and public equity, venture capital and credit.
In addition to its own balance sheet investments, Mubadala Capital invests third-party capital on behalf of institutional investors via its two private equity funds, one early stage venture fund and a number of managed co-investment vehicles.
Mubadala Capital has offices in Abu Dhabi, New York, San Francisco, Rio de Janeiro and Moscow, with over 100 employees and has made investments of over U.S. $20 billion in aggregate.
The firm announced the development at the FinTech Abu Dhabi 2019. The annual FinTech Abu Dhabi Festival (FinTechAD) is organised by Abu Dhabi Global Market (ADGM), and powered by global innovation platform, Unbound.
The 2019 FinTechAD brings together 13 FinTech Unicorns, close to 5,000 global and local financial institutions, FinTech start-ups, investors, regulatory agencies and the business community to network, collaborate and exchange expertise and knowledge in FinTech developments in Abu Dhabi, the wider MENA region and internationally.