Investment giant Apollo Global Management is finalizing a deal to buy nearly 10% of Mubadala Capital, the alternative asset management arm of Abu Dhabi’s sovereign wealth fund Mubadala Investment Co., according to people familiar with the matter who spoke on condition of anonymity.
The deal is expected to be announced later Monday morning, they said. Financial terms were not immediately known.
The transaction is important on several fronts. This advances Apollo’s ambitions in Abu Dhabi, often referred to as the ‘capital of capital’. The firm has spent the last 15 years building key strategic relationships there, both with the country’s investment arm and its key executives.
Apollo already has a multibillion-dollar partnership with Mubadala Investment Co., first established in 2022 and extended two years ago. At the time of the extension, Apollo said the deal would strengthen the company’s Capital Solutions platform by enabling companies to jointly source and provide customized debt and equity financing to companies around the world.
In 2023, the institutions formed a $2.5 billion joint venture designed specifically to co-invest in global private credit opportunities over a five-year horizon.
For Mubadala Capital in particular – the region’s only large-scale asset manager, advising and administering over $755 billion in assets – the deal advances its growth strategy under CEO Hani Barhoush, and its relevance on the global investment stage. It also marks an inflection point for the company’s core alternatives business, which has grown to more than $60 billion.
Apollo Global Management, since the beginning of the year
John Zito, co-president of Apollo’s Asset Management business, and Barhoush have worked closely together over the past several years and, according to sources, their close relationship and the success of previous partnerships led to discussions about deepening ties. So does the belief that scale in the asset management industry is more important than ever.
“Capital as a moat is an important thing,” said a person familiar with the matter.
Importantly, the deal also marks a notable shift in the relationship between U.S. investment firms and the Middle East. While the region, and Abu Dhabi in particular, has long been a sought-after source of capital, this deal further reverses that dynamic, with Apollo making a significant direct investment in the country and its investment vision.
Mubadala Capital’s international offices include London, New York, Rio de Janeiro and San Francisco.
Apollo’s investment in Mubadala Capital is similar to deals the firm has made with other asset management platforms, including Diameter Capital, Thoreau, Motive Partners and others.
Spokespeople for both companies declined to comment.
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