Swiss asset manager Partners Group sets up ADGM office in regional expansion push

Partners Group, a Switzerland-based private market investment company with $150 billion in assets under management, is expanding its presence in the Middle East with the opening of a new regional headquarters in Abu Dhabi financial centre ADGM.

The push to broaden its regional footprint is part of the company’s strategy to tie up with institutional investors to capitalise on opportunities within the technology-led transformation of industries, “often with a nexus to the region”, it said in a statement on Tuesday.

The move is about breaking bread with investors, being close and enabling a deeper partnership to invest globally, Partners Group's regional managing director told The National.

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"We cut out the noise," Suhail Albaz said. "We try and make our decisions based on our strategic priorities. We appreciate that there are people that you know, are trying to come over here and have short-term goals, but that's not us."

Steffen Meister, executive chairman of the board, said Abu Dhabi is "increasingly becoming a centre of gravity for global advancements in technology, energy, next-generation manufacturing and digital services".

“It is attracting increasing amounts of capital, drawn to the regional investment opportunities and the chance to partner with Abu Dhabi’s cutting-edge investors on global transactions," he added.

Expansion to the UAE capital has increased the number of global offices operated by the company to 22. Partners Group joins a growing list of asset managers, insurers, financial institutions and investment houses that have chosen to set up a base in the financial hub and use it as a platform for their regional expansion.

Last week, Harrison Street, a $56 billion US-based real estate and infrastructure investment manager, said it is entering the Middle East market with the opening of an office at ADGM, after it received a financial services licence from ADGM's regulator, the Financial Services Regulatory Authority.

In February, German asset manager Patrizia was granted approval by the FSRA to start operations at ADGM. The Augsburg-based company, which has about €55 billion ($57.7 billion) in assets under management, plans to arrange and advise real estate investments for clients in the region.

The two real estate managers add to a stream of companies that are eager to tap into the Middle East's growing investment market. New York-based BlackRock, the world's top asset manager with nearly $11.5 trillion in assets under management, in November received a commercial licence to operate at ADGM.

In September, ADGM welcomed its first trillion-dollar asset managers – PGIM, the global asset management business of the New York Stock Exchange-listed Prudential Financial, and Chicago investment firm Nuveen, with both aiming to expand their operations and client bases in the Middle East.

The flurry of new additions has pushed the number of companies in ADGM higher during the first quarter of this year, with assets under management also increasing by 33 per cent annually, the financial hub said this month.

The total number of entities operating at ADGM rose by 43 per cent annually to 2,781 in the first three months of this year, it said in a statement. At the end of last year, the financial zone had 2,381 operational entities.

Partners Group has maintained a presence in the Middle East since the opening of its Dubai office in 2010. The firm’s investment mandate span private equity, private credit, infrastructure and real estate among other asset classes.

Education and health care have been the leading investment themes, said Mr Albaz, given they have natural demand drivers around them, making them an easier entry point into the Middle East.

Its current regional portfolio of companies employ more than 2,000 people and many are expanding their footprint. International School Partnerships, founded by Partners Group in 2013, has recently acquired its 10th school in the Middle East, it said.

Partners Group is actively assessing investment opportunities in renewables and luxury retail sector companies with solid fundamentals, targeting $1 billion to $1.2 billion equity investment. Mr Albaz said.

“The Middle East is a key growth area for Partners Group and we plan to significantly develop our business in the GCC and across the broader region,” said Mr Albaz, who also leads the Abu Dhabi office.

"Not only are we focused on deepening our network of regional clients and business partners, but we are also actively pursuing the growing opportunities for transformational investing offered to our portfolio of businesses and assets by establishing themselves in the Middle East.”