Abu Dhabi’s ADQ Plots Next Act After Assets Double in Four Years
The emirate’s newest wealth fund is growing faster than many of its peers. Executives are now looking for ways to take advantage of that momentum.
Office buildings in the Abu Dhabi Global Market in Abu Dhabi.
Photographer: Natalie Naccache/BloombergSovereign wealth fund ADQ has more than doubled assets in four years, boasting a portfolio that spans everything from a stake in auction house Sotheby’s to Abu Dhabi’s flagship airline. From a high-rise in the heart of the city, executives are plotting ways to capitalize on that momentum.
Over a period that included a pandemic, two US elections and a surge of interest in artificial intelligence, the $251 billion ADQ emerged as one of the world’s fastest-growing wealth funds. Now, amid a trade war that’s seen some investors look for opportunities amid market dislocations, ADQ Chief Executive Officer Mohamed Hassan Alsuwaidi is preaching the virtues of patience.
“We won’t go out guns blazing,” Alsuwaidi, also the United Arab Emirates’ minister of investment, said in a rare interview in Abu Dhabi. “We track, we trace, we take time. We are an investor that takes our time to understand the business, but we can respond quickly to a deal.”