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BlackRock is open to partnering with sovereign wealth funds (SWFs) across the GCC to ramp up investments in Asia. The world’s largest asset manager has been active in India and China for more than a decade.
Ben Powell, Chief Strategist for Middle East and Asia Pacific at BlackRock Investment Institute, said the company was “very open minded” about co-investment opportunities with SWFs in the region.
“We are driven by opportunity, and as the world’s largest investor, we see an advantage over many of our competitors in reach and a scale. So, we are very open minded about increasing our focus in Asian markets,” Powell told Zawya on the sidelines of the Abu Dhabi Finance Week (ADFW). “As many know, the India bull story is very real, and we want to be a part of this, be it through co-investments or JVs from the region.”
Middle East draw
With $13.52 trillion in assets under management (AUM), BlackRock has expanded its network in the GCC over the past two years with the set up of its regional headquarters in Riyadh in 2023, following the launch of an investment platform with the help of a $5 billion anchor investment from the kingdom’s Public Investment Fund (PIF).
A year later, the Larry Fink-backed fund manager was granted a commercial license to operate in Abu Dhabi, and since, has expanded its head count in Riyadh and Dubai, along with opening offices in Kuwait and Qatar.
“The UAE and Saudi are at the core of deepening the importance of capital markets in the region and it is increasingly clear the regulatory efforts are very strong in establishing these places as a regional hub, and maybe in time, as a global hub for capital,” he said.
Powell added that BlackRock was already looking to double its investments in Saudi by 2030, with current investments in the kingdom standing at $35 billion.
AI in focus
BlackRock’s 2026 outlook for the region calls for a push for investments in artificial intelligence (AI) and infrastructure development.
While energy remained an important sector in the GCC for now, Powell said the outlook for the artificial intelligence (AI) “mega boom” will continue to gather momentum.
Blackrock partnered with Microsoft and launched a $30 billion fund last year to invest in AI infrastructure such as data centres and energy projects.
The partnership is expected to also mobilise up to $100 billion in total investment potential when including debt financing, the companies said.
According to Powell, there is increased potential in tech firms tapping into capital markets to fund the next phase of AI expansion, with a specialised focus on the build out, which is going to be necessary to help more individuals or companies drive productivity gains. “This is where the money is flowing and will build up to be a mainstream asset class over the next few years,” he said.
(Reporting by Bindu Rai, editing by Seban Scaria)
