THIS MORNING: More names are expanding in ADGM + is Mubadala eyeing a play for a European fast-food giant?

Good morning, friends. It’s another quiet(er) day for our newsflow, though that hasn’t stopped the UAE from pushing ahead with its logistics drive. An upcoming logistics and industrial real estate platform targeting prospects across the UAE and KSA is our Big Story Today, courtesy of homegrown alternative investment manager Octo Management Consultancies and GFH.

We also bring news of the UAE’s Alcazar Energy clinching a USD 420 mn contract to run Egypt’s Gabal El Zeit wind farm.

Plus: Reports are in of Mubdala eyeing a takeover of one of the largest fast-food operators in the Iberian Peninsula. And Blue Owl Capital and Copper ME are the latest players to be expanding in ADGM.

WEATHER- It’s more of the same today, with highs hovering between 39-40°C in Dubai and Abu Dhabi, along with a low of 30°C, according to our favorite weather app.

Mubadala eyes a Whopper-sized agreement in Iberia

Mubadala is reportedly weighing a play for one of the largest fast-food operators in the Iberian Peninsula. The Abu Dhabi sovereign investor has hired advisers to prepare a potential bid for Restaurant Brands Europe, Spanish newspaper Expansión reports.

The caveat: Mubadala is not the only party circling the asset — investment firms Meritage and Apollo have also expressed interest in an acquisition.

Restaurant Brands Europe operates Burger King, Popeyes, and Tim Hortons restaurants across Spain and Portugal. The business could demand a valuation of EUR 2-3 bn including debt. Private firm Civen, which owns a 70% stake in the company, is said to be working with Morgan Stanley on the sale process. Chairman Gregorio Jiménez holds roughly 20% while Restaurant Brands International retains the remaining 10% stake through Burger King Europe.

IN CONTEXT- An acquisition would add another consumer-facing business to Mubadala’s portfolio. Mubadala already has exposure to the quick-service restaurant sector through its backing of Brazilian restaurant operator Zamp, which operates Starbucks, Burger King, and Popeyes restaurants in Brazil.

Adnoc wants to expand its presence in Canada

Adnoc is mulling potential investments in Canada, CEO of Upstream Musabbeh Al Kaabi told Reuters, adding that the firm, through its international investment arm XRG, is interested in the country’s upstream and LNG sectors. XRG has been building a global platform, backed by its parent firm’s USD 150 bn capex budget through 2030, targeting a top-five global position in gas and petrochemicals.

Adnoc is no stranger to the Canadian market — its portfolio company Nova Chemicals already has a presence in Alberta.

Dubai's GigaFarm nears harvest

Dubai's giant circular farm is nearing its first harvest at a time when food security and supply-chain resilience are back in focus. ReFarm Global Investments, the UAE agritech and waste-to-value company behind the project, and UK-based Intelligent Growth Solutions are set to complete the first phase of construction at their GigaFarm facility in Dubai's Food Tech Valley in the coming weeks, according to a statement. The first crops are expected later this year.

What is it? We first reported on the project in 2023 when ReFarm and Food Tech Valley unveiled plans for a waste-to-value farm capable of replacing around 1% of the UAE's fresh produce imports. The 900k sqm facility combines vertical farming, food-waste recycling, and resource-recovery technologies in a closed-loop system.

What to expect: The first phase will bring 20 growing towers online this summer. Once complete, the facility is expected to produce more than 3 mn kg of produce annually and divert over 50k tons of food waste from landfill each year.

IN CONTEXT- The milestone comes as the UAE ramps up efforts to strengthen food security and reduce reliance on imported produce amid periodic supply-chain disruptions. Other recent efforts include UNS Vertical Farms’ new Al Ain tomato facility.

Liquidity is back

The Central Bank of the UAE sold AED 43 bn in monetary bills (M-bills) across four maturities on Monday, according to Emirates NBD Research (pdf). The sale follows the maturity of AED 100 bn in M-bills at the start of the month, which boosted surplus liquidity in the banking system, with the sale being larger than others the central bank has issued so far this year.

The breakdown: The auction included an AED 23 bn 322-day new issuance, an AED 5 bn 154-day tap issuance, an AED 6 bn 70-day tap issuance, and an AED 9 bn 28-day new issuance, with yields ranging between 3.82-4.13%, according to the CBUAE’s auction notice (pdf).

Decoding central bank speak: M-bills are short-term debt securities used to manage banking system liquidity. Since the war broke out, the CBUAE has stepped in to shield lenders with liquidity packages. Emirates NBD said pricing in the latest auction points to improving liquidity conditions, with excess liquidity reaching AED 185 bn — its highest level since early February — while benchmark rates indicate stable or easing financial conditions.

More arrivals in ADGM

Alternative asset manager Blue Owl Capital has opened a regional headquarters in Abu Dhabi, according to a statement, adding to ADGM’s roster of global finance firms. The office will serve as the firm's Middle East hub and house members of its Institutional Capital and GP Stakes teams.

And on the digital-assets side: Infrastructure provider Copper ME received in-principle approval from ADGM's Financial Services Regulatory Authority to expand its regulated activities, according to a separate statement. Subject to final approval, the firm plans to offer services including digital-asset custody, settlement, collateral management, and tokenized money-market fund brokerage from Abu Dhabi.

ADGM’s momentum shows little sign of slowing. The financial center added 961 new licences in 1Q 2026, while 2Q has already seen firms including Cantor Fitzgerald and Vista Equity Partners set up shop in Abu Dhabi.

Data point

17.8% — that’s how much Middle East tech stocks have lost YTD on the back of the regional conflict, according to Magnitt’s new Magnitt Tech Index (MGTI), which tracks 15 tech firms across the UAE, Saudi Arabia, and Egypt, the venture intelligence platform said in a press release (pdf). The index tracks seven firms in the UAE, including Presight, Talabat, and Anghami.

The decline stands in sharp contrast to the global picture, where AI-linked firms have driven one of the most sustained stock market rallies in recent memory. Bloomberg reported last month that the AI rally is currently delivering momentum investors their best returns in decades. Some individual names have seen staggering gains — SanDisk shares, buoyed by AI’s data storage demands, have climbed more than 600% this year.

PSA

The FTA is broadening the VAT refunds UAE nationals can claim when building a home. The Federal Tax Authority has expanded the list of expenses eligible for its homebuilder VAT refund scheme — and the changes apply retroactively to all claims submitted on or after 1 January 2026, state news agency Wam reports.

What’s new: Under the expanded initiative, Emirati citizens can now claim back the UAE’s standard 5% VAT on a wider set of construction costs, provided those features form an integral part of the new residential property, sit on the same plot, and directly serve the primary residence. The newly eligible expense categories include staff quarters, home gyms, integrated security and smart home systems, electronic or smart doors, swimming pools, and landscaping.

The FTA says the scheme expansion is expected to deliver an estimated AED 200 mn in total VAT savings for UAE nationals, averaging around AED 25k per claim.

Dubai tourist visa, faster than ever. Tourists looking to visit Dubai can now secure their 30- or 60-day single-entry visa within 48 hours, according to Dubai’s General Directorate for Identity and Foreigners Affairs. Tourists need to submit their application and required documents through one of the authorized tourism offices to get their visa within hours.

You’ve spent decades building wealth, and the question now isn’t how to make money — it’s how to make sure it survives you, works across borders, and doesn’t quietly erode while you’re not looking. The rules have changed. Egyptian real estate, once a near-guaranteed store of value, is competing with markets in Greece, Spain, and Dubai.

Whether it’s art as an asset, crowd-funding, or the tax implications quietly stacking up behind that second passport, the toolkit for serious capital deployment has expanded faster than most conventional advice — or most advisors — have.

In Issue 3 of EnterpriseAM Money Matters, we cover the decisions that matter most when you’re at the stage where capital preservation is just as important as capital growth — and where getting it wrong is no longer something you can simply recover from.

Tap or click here to subscribe to the Egypt edition|, delivered to your inbox today, 12 PM UAE.

The big story abroad

Geopolitical tensions are escalating once again after the US launched retaliatory airstrikes against Iran. The strikes follow Tehran shooting down a US helicopter over the Strait of Hormuz, with US forces targeting Iranian air defense and radar sites near the strait. “The mission is a proportional response to unjustified Iranian aggression,” the US Central Command said in a statement. The exchange threatens the stability of the already-fragile ceasefire and complicates negotiations for a peace agreement.

Everyone wants a piece of SpaceX: The IPO has so far attracted over USD 250 bn in orders, with investors lining up to get a piece of what is expected to be the largest-ever IPO. The figure is expected to rise further as the company continues its marketing push. The artificial intelligence and spaceflight player was looking to raise USD 75 bn from the offering.

The tech jitters are back: The S&P 500 and Nasdaq Composite closed lower on Tuesday, dragged down by a sector-wide tech selloff as investors shift their focus to defensive sectors. Some think SpaceX has something to do with it, noting that investors are repositioning ahead of the historic USD 1.75 tn listing, further worsening the pressure on mega-cap tech stocks.

Also worth reading this morning: The Wall Street Journal is out with a piece diving into The Future of Work and AI. With insight from 16 economists, the piece looks at what AI means for the economy, employees, and the workplace.

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