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Investment
India doubles down on MENA ties in search of energy, compute for AI, and defense sales
A USD 5 bn pledge, 30 mn barrels of crude storage, an AI supercluster and…
Alabbar plans USD 18 bn fund to invest in Syria
The investments would be skewed more heavily towards real estate development projects, with around USD…
Syria’s sanctions era comes to an end as UAE + IOCs eye more investments
The vote of confidence comes as more foreign investors circle a wide range of sectors…
Is Hynfra’s USD 1 bn Jordan green hydrogen announcement anything more than marketing … for its next announcement?
What we’re looking for: a final investment decision, a named offtaker … or any sign…
IPO
Saudi Arabia’s Dar Al Balad may have been a small IPO, but it broke the wartime ice. Will others follow?
15 global financial services firms have set up shop in the UAE since the start…
What’s behind Oman’s USD 7.5 bn sovereign windfall
With OIA acting as the main architect for Oman’s major IPOs lately, the sovereign’s earnings…
Full-speed ahead for Saudi ECM + DCM transactions
Plus: PIF kicks the tires on appetite for Newcastle
Saudi Aramco may be looking to raise USD 35 bn from asset sales — and we have M&A news from the UAE, Saudi, and Egypt
Plus: EGX bellwether CIB is pushing ahead with its launch of a digital bank
M&A
Qatar’s Estithmar Holding to acquire 49% of Syria’s Shahba bank
The move marks the first post-war foreign investment in Syria’s banking sector
Gulf money will back Hollywood’s biggest merger
PLUS: Adia wrote a ticket for the biggest US medical services buyout in more than…
Cross-border acquisitions is the flavor of the day for DP World + IHC
PLUS: Emirates NBD pulls off the largest syndicated borrowing in the GCC this year
Debt
Tunisia’s strongest FDI year in a decade won’t be enough to fix its structural problems
Without the buffer of tourism and cheap energy that saved it last time, Tunisia…
More wins for ADGM, L’Imad and Adnoc make big infrastructure bets, and Aramco wants USD 10 bn from its real estate portfolio
Plus: A rare cross-border securitization could open a new source of funding for fast-growing…
Saudi sukuk are going from a local asset class to global benchmarks
Even as regional tensions could spur risk-off sentiments for emerging markets, Saudi Arabia is…
Brookfield + Alshaya Group form Dubai Hills JV and Apis Partners closes USD 1.23 bn third fund
Plus: First Abu Dhabi Bank tapped international markets with 2x oversubscribed sukuk
Macro + Economy
Dubai and Doha roll out new stimulus packages to support the private sector amid fallout from the war
Dubai’s AED 1.5 bn package primarily targets tourism and hospitality
The first question for Iraq’s new prime minister isn’t whether he can reform Iraq — it’s whether he can make payroll
If he can’t pay civil servants, Ali Al Zaidi may need a bailout — and…
Even without the oil windfall, Oman shrank its budget deficit
Accounting methods mean that oil revenues are typically only reflected in the fiscal picture months…
Higher defense + subsidy spending pushed Saudi Arabia’s widening 1Q 2026 budget deficit
The PIF followed the release of the deficit data with a new USD 7 bn…
Deals
Foreign appetite bolstered Sharjah Islamic’s USD 710 mn rights issue
Plus: A new fund will buy shares off founders and others locked into pre-public startups
Saudi firms are lining up to IPO, while UAE and Egyptian outfits strike more cautious notes
Gulf investors will also have appetite to cash out risk through Western IPOs of their…
Aramco’s net income posts 25% y-o-y growth in 1Q despite Hormuz disruptions
Higher oil prices outweighed any losses in export volumes
Ta’ziz locks in deals worth nearly USD 29 bn, giving the UAE’s industrial localization drive a huge boost
Plus: The second Gulf IPO since the war broke out is off the ground in…