Emirates NBD is closing in on a USD 3 bn acquisition of a 60% stake in India’s RBL Bank

Emirates NBD is closing in on a USD 3 bn acquisition of a 60% stake in India’s RBL Bank after securing green lights from both the Central Bank of the UAE and the Reserve Bank of India. The Indian regulator reportedly approved a majority ownership of at least 74%, though voting rights remain capped at 26%. The deal, which may trigger a mandatory tender offer as early as next week, would make Emirates NBD the first foreign lender to take majority control of a profitable, listed Indian bank.

OpenAI closed its record USD 122 bn series G funding round with investments from Abu Dhabi AI investor MGX as well as Amazon, Nvidia, and Softbank. The round gives OpenAI a valuation of USD 852 bn as it eyes a late-year IPO. MGX has been a consistent backer across primary and secondary financing rounds for OpenAI since 2024, in addition to also backing OpenAI rivals Anthropic and xAI. Qatar Investment Authority has also backed Anthropic.

Masdar and TotalEnergies are pooling their Asian renewable energy portfolios into a USD 2.2 bn 50-50 joint venture headquartered in Abu Dhabi. The new entity launches with 3 GW of operational assets and a 6 GW pipeline in advanced development across nine markets, including Indonesia, Uzbekistan, and Japan. By centralizing execution, the partners aim to bring the “scale and speed” required to capture accelerating electricity demand across the continent.

Hillhouse Investment just made Abu Dhabi very happy by staying the course: The global PE outfit has landed a category 3C license to open an office in ADGM — exactly the signal the emirate wants to send. The firm already has significant exposure in the UAE through its backing of Virtuzone and Hartland International School. Hillhouse will use the ADGM office as a permanent base to scour for deals across the Gulf.

Hillhouse isn’t the only big global player taking on more exposure to our region: BlackRock is partnering with ADIB Capital on a shariah-compliant global healthcare equities fund, giving investors exposure to pharma, biotech, and medical devices. The open-ended fund will target undervalued firms with strong fundamentals.

FAB is lining up a USD 5 bn total return swap for Nigeria, which will use the proceeds from the six-year facility to fund infrastructure and refinance more expensive debt as it grapples with a tightening global yield environment.

Citystars, Park St., and Sky Innovo Developments are launching a EGP 100 bn (USD 1.9bn) mixed-use development in New Cairo. The 140k sqm Citystars Park St. will integrate office space and retail with luxury hospitality managed by Fairmont Hotels and Resorts.

Adnoc’s XRG and OMV have officially launched Borouge International after completing a

USD 60 bn polyolefins merger. The new entity puts Borouge, Borealis, and Nova Chemicals under a single brand headquartered in Austria with a major UAE base, creating the world’s leading pure-play polyolefins company.

Uh, Enterprise? Poly-whats? Polyolefins are the most widely used of all thermoplastics, accounting for about 50% of global production. They’re used in everything from packaging to automotive parts and household items.

Kingdom Holding purchased a SAR 255 mn (USD 68 mn) stake in Bill Gates-led climate investment fund Breakthrough Energy Ventures. The stake — the size of which was not disclosed — was acquired at a 30% discount to market value from Kingdom Holding Chairman Prince Alwaleed bin Talal.

Background: Prince Alwaleed invested USD 50 mn in BEV when Gates launched it back in 2016. The investment was part of a “commitment to invest more than USD 1 bn in energy technologies” from Gates and other major global business figures such as Jeff Bezos, Jack Ma, and Michael Bloomberg.

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