Gulf Islamic Investments (GII), a Dubai-based alternative asset manager, aims to triple its assets under management to $10 billion by the end of the decade as it seeks to build greater institutional scale in an increasingly crowded Middle East private equity market, according to a report by Bloomberg.
To fund that expansion, GII is exploring options to bring in as much as $400 million in the near term through a combination of a capital increase and Islamic debt issuance, according to co-founder Mohammed Alhassan. Along with fundraising, the firm has been assessing acquisition opportunities to accelerate growth.
GII’s ambition comes as global buyout firms and private credit managers expand their presence across the Gulf, raising competition for deals and talent while also widening the pool of potential co-investors. In recent years, GII positioned itself as a homegrown partner and “gateway” for overseas capital seeking access to regional deal flow as transactions in the Gulf become larger and more competitive.
The firm has been active across private equity, real estate, and private credit, deploying more than $1 billion over the past four years. And it typically co-invests 20% to 30% of the equity in its transactions, with the remainder sourced from institutional and high-net-worth investors.
GII was founded in 2014 and operates across Abu Dhabi, Dubai, and Riyadh. In late 2024, the group said it completed an oversubscribed $100 million capital increase, describing itself at the time as having more than $4.5 billion in assets under management and outlining a strategy focused on private equity opportunities across Saudi Arabia and the wider GCC.
While details of the latest funding and potential acquisitions remain under discussion, GII executives have framed the push as an effort to create a scaled, Middle East-based alternative asset manager with a broader product set that can compete with international peers over the long term.
