Gulf sovereign funds hit record $53.9B in H1 deals

Mubadala led all sovereign funds globally with $15.2 billion deployed in H1 2026, followed by Saudi Arabia's PIF and other GCC peers, according to Global SWF.zawya+1
Nearly half the capital flowed to the U.S., with AI and tech dominating — including participation in Anthropic's $65 billion funding round earlier this year.agbi+1
Gulf deal volume surged nearly 200% to about $300 billion in the half-year, prompting Wall Street banks to expand their regional advisory teams.advisorperspectives

Gulf sovereign wealth funds defied volatility triggered by the Iran war to post their most active first half on record, committing $53.9 billion across 108 deals between January and June 2026, according to new data from Global SWF published on Tuesday. The figure marks a historical high for the region's state-owned investors, with technology and artificial intelligence drawing the bulk of capital as Wall Street rushes to staff up its Gulf advisory teams.khaleejtimes+1

AI Bets and US Dealflow Drive Record

Nearly half of the $53.9 billion deployed by the Gulf's seven largest sovereign funds flowed into the United States, with China and the United Kingdom following as the next most popular destinations. Technology was the dominant sector, extending a two-year trend of Gulf sovereign capital pouring into AI companies. Major bets have included participation in Anthropic's $65 billion Series H funding round earlier this year and continued backing of OpenAI through Abu Dhabi's MGX vehicle.agbi+3

The wider deal value involving Gulf entities surged nearly 200% in the first half of 2026 to approximately $300 billion, according to data compiled by Bloomberg. That wave of activity has prompted Wall Street's largest banks to expand their Gulf-focused teams, adding senior bankers to capture advisory fees from the region's accelerating dealmaking.advisorperspectives

Mubadala Leads, Industry Assets Hit New Peak

Abu Dhabi's Mubadala Investment Company topped Global SWF's ranking of the world's most active sovereign funds for the period, deploying $15.2 billion at the group level. Saudi Arabia's Public Investment Fund and the remaining members of the so-called Gulf Seven — which includes the Abu Dhabi Investment Authority, ADQ, the Investment Corporation of Dubai, the Qatar Investment Authority, and the Kuwait Investment Authority — also maintained a strong pace.zawya+1

Globally, state-owned investors deployed $143.6 billion across 366 transactions in the first half, pushing the sovereign investment industry's total assets under management to an all-time peak of $62.5 trillion. Gulf funds alone accounted for more than a third of all sovereign capital committed worldwide during the period.khaleejtimes

War Failed to Dampen Appetite

The record came despite a sharp bout of market turbulence sparked by the US-Iran conflict and an accompanying spike in oil prices. Fortune reported in June that the five biggest Gulf spenders collectively committed nearly $26 billion during March, April, and May alone, with Global SWF noting they had "shown no sign of slowdown (yet), with a stronger average pace in the past quarter, than in the five years before the start of the war".fortune

The figures underscore how Gulf capital — and Abu Dhabi's in particular — is becoming an increasingly dominant force in global dealmaking, even through periods of acute regional instability.khaleejtimes

Sources (47)