Mubadala tops Gulf sovereign fund activity through September

Abu Dhabi’s Mubadala Investment Company was the most active sovereign wealth fund among the Gulf’s leading state investors during the first nine months of 2026, deploying $26.2 billion, according to data released by Global SWF.

Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund ranked second with $14 billion of investments between January and September, followed by Abu Dhabi Investment Authority at $12.2 billion, Abu Dhabi’s L’imad at $10.8 billion and Qatar Investment Authority at $10.3 billion.

Global SWF’s 2026 MENA Playbook, released at the end of the third quarter, showed sovereign investors across the Middle East and North Africa deployed $102 billion through 245 transactions during the nine-month period. The region accounted for 39 per cent of dealmaking by state-owned investors worldwide, although both its absolute investment and share of global activity were below the levels recorded during 2023-25.

Mubadala’s $26.2 billion tally includes capital deployed by Abu Dhabi Investment Council, Mubadala Capital and MGX. The group’s investment platforms participated in major financing rounds involving artificial intelligence companies OpenAI and Anthropic and data platform Databricks, reflecting technology’s prominent role in Gulf sovereign investment activity this year.

The nine-month figure also marks a sharp increase from the $15.2 billion Mubadala had deployed by the end of June. Gulf sovereign wealth funds collectively committed $53.9 billion across 108 transactions during the first half of 2026, with Mubadala already leading the group at that stage.

Investment flows remained heavily concentrated in major international markets. The United States received 45 per cent of the value invested by MENA sovereign funds during the first nine months, Global SWF data showed. China, including Hong Kong, accounted for 10 per cent, followed by the United Kingdom at 7 per cent and Singapore at 3 per cent.

The figures underline the scale of Abu Dhabi’s sovereign investment system. Mubadala, ADIA and L’imad together accounted for close to half of the $102 billion deployed by MENA sovereign investors through September, making the emirate the largest concentration of capital among the leading regional funds during the period.

Mubadala entered 2026 after a year of record capital deployment. The company said in April that it invested AED143 billion, equivalent to about $39 billion, during 2025, up 20 per cent from the previous year. Assets under management rose 17 per cent to AED1.4 trillion, or $385 billion, while proceeds increased 27 per cent to AED138 billion.

The Abu Dhabi investor reported annualised returns of 10.7 per cent over five years and 10.3 per cent over 10 years at the end of 2025. Its portfolio spans private and public markets, real estate and infrastructure, alternatives and credit, with investments extending across more than 80 countries.

Mubadala has continued to announce transactions across technology and other sectors during 2026. September activity included an investment in payments company Paymob, a significant minority investment in Luckin Coffee and an agreement with Together AI to explore artificial-intelligence infrastructure opportunities in the UAE.

Global SWF’s annual data show how the ranking has shifted between the two largest deployers. PIF committed $36.2 billion in 2025, but the figure was dominated by its participation in the Electronic Arts transaction. Mubadala deployed $33.7 billion in that year under Global SWF’s group methodology, after excluding the effect of the gaming transaction from comparisons. The latest nine-month ranking therefore reflects a broader flow of transactions across Mubadala and its related investment platforms rather than dependence on a single exceptionally large deal during the reporting period.

Global SWF said the pace of MENA sovereign investment through September would translate into about $136 billion of deployment for the full year if maintained. That would remain below the 2025 total, which was lifted substantially by PIF’s participation in the acquisition of Electronic Arts, but would still rank as the region’s second-highest annual investment level in the data provider’s series.