Blackstone has opened an office in the Dubai International Financial Centre to serve as the regional hub for its wealth management business across the Gulf and beyond.
The new base adds to Blackstone's existing presence in Abu Dhabi Global Market. The firm has been present in the United Arab Emirates since 2010 and has already upgraded its Abu Dhabi office licence to strengthen deal origination in the region. It also plans to open an office in Kuwait.
The DIFC office targets affluent individuals, institutions and family offices. Blackstone's private wealth business intends to build on its partnerships with leading banking institutions in the region, and has already established more than 40 distributor relationships across the Gulf.
Jon Gray, Blackstone's president and chief operating officer, said: "The UAE has built an extraordinary position as a global finance and investment hub." He said the office would allow the firm to "deepen our partnerships and broaden access to alternatives" for investors.
Blackstone, described as the world's largest alternative investment manager with nearly USD 1.4 trillion, aims to grow substantially the proportion of its assets under management sourced from the Gulf by the turn of the decade. Chief executive Steve Schwarzman told The National last month that the firm has committed more capital to the Gulf over the past twelve months than at any point in its history, and intends to invest more.
