Qatar a competitive hub for fund-to-fund programmes

Qatar, which recently launched its first venture capital (VC) Fund of Funds, has the edge to foster a conducive environment for funds eyeing the Middle East region, an official of Qatar Investment Authority (QIA) has said.
Speaking at one of Web Summit Qatar 2024’s panel discussion on ‘The role of Middle Eastern Funds in the Global Economy’, Mohamed al-Sowaidi, QIA’s chief investment officer – Americas, said the QIA’s $1bn investment in international and regional venture capital funds to support entrepreneurs both here and abroad underlines Qatar’s attractiveness as a destination for international funds.
“We announced a sizable commitment, a $1bn commitment for fund-to-funds programme to focus on funds that want to establish a presence in the Middle East, and we believe Qatar is quite competitive for that,” al-Sowaidi said, referring to the pronouncement made by HE the Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs Sheikh Mohamed bin Abdulrahman bin Jassim al-Thani during Web Summit Qatar 2024’s Opening Night.
During the discussion, which was moderated by Time contributor Zachary Karabell, al-Sowaidi was joined by Khaled Talhouni, managing partner, Nuwa Capital, and Noor Sweid, founder and managing partner, Global Ventures.
Sweid highlighted the region’s strong growth, young population, and high digital penetration as key factors that also make it attractive for investment. Meanwhile, Talhouni expressed optimism on the underlying macro trends that are driving the region between demographics, overall economic diversification, liberalisation of regional economies, as well as improvements in the regulatory environment.