People familiar with the plan say L'imad Capital is being molded into a global investing arm that would support private equity and other funds and also execute transactions on its own. The strategy is to show results first through direct investments, co-investments and alliances, then seek outside capital. One person said a first fundraise could come as early as next year.
The approach is still being considered, and nothing has been definitively decided yet. The firm did not respond to requests for comment.
This falls under L'imad Holding, Abu Dhabi's newest sovereign wealth fund, which has developed a niche by prioritizing investments that advance the emirate's broader ambitions. Bloomberg News has reported that L'imad, chaired by Crown Prince Sheikh Khaled bin Mohamed Al Nahyan, is itself in the middle of an overhaul.
To carry out the plan, L'imad Capital is recruiting a chief executive and has narrowed the shortlist to candidates with experience spanning private equity, infrastructure and private credit, said people familiar with the search. Additional top-level recruiting is in progress, and appointments are anticipated over the next few months.
One blueprint envisions the parent fund functioning as the apex holding company, owning stakes across major Abu Dhabi enterprises, while L'imad Capital would run more like a buyout shop. Under that structure, it could target transactions that strengthen existing portfolio firms or focus chiefly on generating returns for the holding company, said a person familiar with the matter.
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The fund has been active. In May, it teamed up with BlackRock Inc.'s Global Infrastructure Partners, Singapore's Temasek Holdings Pte. and Abu Dhabi National Oil Co. on a plan to deploy $30 billion into infrastructure projects. Late last year, L'imad aligned with influential Middle Eastern investors who backed Paramount Skydance Corp.'s bid for Warner Bros.
Discovery Inc. And last month it unveiled a proposal to buy Abu Dhabi Ports Co. outright and delist it, a step that would hand the government closer oversight of a leading logistics and infrastructure conglomerate covering ports, maritime services and economic zones. Bloomberg News has also reported L'imad is one of several bidders looking at an aviation business run by Apollo Global Management Inc., as Abu Dhabi seeks options beyond the Strait of Hormuz and expands its logistics and transport presence.
The organization gained additional prominence in January, when Crown Prince Sheikh Khaled took the chairman role and the fund integrated sovereign investor ADQ, adding assets that range from a stake in Sotheby's all the way to Abu Dhabi's flagship airline, alongside other marquee domestic holdings.
Abu Dhabi's investment apparatus is enormous, with institutions managing roughly $2 trillion of sovereign wealth, and dealmaking has continued despite the regional war. If L'imad Capital ultimately brings in third-party money, it would mark another step in the emirate's shift from being known mostly for deploying sovereign capital to actively drawing institutional investors into its platforms. There is precedent: Mubadala Capital began accepting outside investors after more than a decade building its track record, and it set up a structure to tap third-party capital at home for the first time.
For everyday investors, the takeaway is simple: the Gulf keeps assembling big platforms across infrastructure, logistics and next-gen tech. If L'imad Capital moves ahead on this timeline, watch the leadership hires, the kinds of deals it closes, and when it starts taking commitments from outside investors.
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