Aliph Capital, a GCC-focused private equity fund manager, has received a $125 million investment for its maiden fund from Abu Dhabi-based holding company ADQ.
Aliph Fund I (LP) is a $250m target private equity fund domiciled in the Abu Dhabi Global Market.
The fund aims to invest in “high quality” mid-sized companies in the UAE and across the GCC to speed up their expansion and growth trajectory, the fund manager said on Monday.
“The timing is perfect for GCC-based private equity to invest in the region’s mid-market growth stars, who — when fully equipped with digital and tech enablement levers — will generate significant returns and power the ongoing diversification and transformation of the GCC economy,” said Huda Al Lawati, founder and chief executive of Aliph Capital.
Venture capitalists and state-backed investors are boosting investments in start-ups as they become an increasingly important part of the global economic development agenda.
Globally, the value created by start-ups stands at about $3 trillion, which is almost at par with the economic output of a G7 economy, according to advisory company Startup Genome.
Funding for these companies broke records in 2021 when it hit $621 billion, according to CB Insights.
Companies in the UAE raised $699m in the first half of 2022, ranking the Emirates as the leading country for venture capital financing in the Mena region, according to data platform Magnitt.
The UAE also led the region in terms of deals, which grew by 10 per cent in the six-month period from a year ago, with the biggest deal being a $181m convertible note mega-round for Abu Dhabi-based Pure Harvest in June.
The Arab world’s second-largest economy attracted more than $1.47bn in venture capital in 2021, according to Magnitt data.
Aliph Capital will seek to acquire sizeable, active positions in privately owned mid-market companies across the GCC that possess robust business fundamentals to realise attractive returns through active ownership, combined with strong value-creation opportunities, institutional governance standards and digitalisation, the fund manager said.
Building a strategic partnership with an Abu Dhabi-based private equity fund dedicated to serve SMEs further supports our aim to accelerate sustainable economic development and growth within the UAE and [the] region."
Murtaza Hussain,
chief investment officer for alternative investments and M&As at ADQ
The alternative investment manager aims to hasten growth and scale up companies by helping them to adopt technology platforms and tools to grow revenue, optimise operations, cut costs and generate attractive returns, Aliph Capital said.
Murtaza Hussain, chief investment officer for alternative investments and mergers and acquisitions at ADQ, said the holding company's investment in Aliph Capital “underlines our commitment to delivering on a financially driven mandate that creates long-term value for Abu Dhabi”.
“Building a strategic partnership with an Abu Dhabi-based private equity fund dedicated to serve SMEs further supports our aim to accelerate sustainable economic development and growth within the UAE and [the] region,” he said.
“Together, we will work in partnership to capture growth opportunities, which complements our core portfolio and enables us to generate attractive, risk-adjusted returns.”
Established in 2018, ADQ is an Abu Dhabi-based investment and holding company with a broad portfolio spanning industries that include energy and utilities, health care and pharmaceutical, mobility and logistics, food and agriculture and financial services.
In March, ADQ consolidated its venture capital activities under DisruptAD, which invests in start-ups and venture capital funds, as well as creates new incubators and accelerators to support Abu Dhabi’s position as a global start-up centre.
DisruptAD aims to support more than 1,000 start-ups over the next five years. Beyond the UAE, the platform is focusing on markets in the broader Mena region, South-East Asia, as well as India, China and the US, according to an ADQ statement at the time.
DisruptAD is also responsible for the Dh1.1bn ($300m) Alpha Wave Incubation Fund that focuses on Indian and South-East Asian start-ups. It also manages the Dh535m Ventures Fund, a flagship initiative of the Ghadan 21 programme.
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- On sale: 2026
- Price: Not announced yet
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Ten tax points to be aware of in 2026
1. Domestic VAT refund amendments: request your refund within five years
If a business does not apply for the refund on time, they lose their credit.
2. E-invoicing in the UAE
Businesses should continue preparing for the implementation of e-invoicing in the UAE, with 2026 a preparation and transition period ahead of phased mandatory adoption.
3. More tax audits
Tax authorities are increasingly using data already available across multiple filings to identify audit risks.
4. More beneficial VAT and excise tax penalty regime
Tax disputes are expected to become more frequent and more structured, with clearer administrative objection and appeal processes. The UAE has adopted a new penalty regime for VAT and excise disputes, which now mirrors the penalty regime for corporate tax.
5. Greater emphasis on statutory audit
There is a greater need for the accuracy of financial statements. The International Financial Reporting Standards standards need to be strictly adhered to and, as a result, the quality of the audits will need to increase.
6. Further transfer pricing enforcement
Transfer pricing enforcement, which refers to the practice of establishing prices for internal transactions between related entities, is expected to broaden in scope. The UAE will shortly open the possibility to negotiate advance pricing agreements, or essentially rulings for transfer pricing purposes.
7. Limited time periods for audits
Recent amendments also introduce a default five-year limitation period for tax audits and assessments, subject to specific statutory exceptions. While the standard audit and assessment period is five years, this may be extended to up to 15 years in cases involving fraud or tax evasion.
8. Pillar 2 implementation
Many multinational groups will begin to feel the practical effect of the Domestic Minimum Top-Up Tax (DMTT), the UAE's implementation of the OECD’s global minimum tax under Pillar 2. While the rules apply for financial years starting on or after January 1, 2025, it is 2026 that marks the transition to an operational phase.
9. Reduced compliance obligations for imported goods and services
Businesses that apply the reverse-charge mechanism for VAT purposes in the UAE may benefit from reduced compliance obligations.
10. Substance and CbC reporting focus
Tax authorities are expected to continue strengthening the enforcement of economic substance and Country-by-Country (CbC) reporting frameworks. In the UAE, these regimes are increasingly being used as risk-assessment tools, providing tax authorities with a comprehensive view of multinational groups’ global footprints and enabling them to assess whether profits are aligned with real economic activity.
Contributed by Thomas Vanhee and Hend Rashwan, Aurifer
Who are the Sacklers?
The Sackler family is a transatlantic dynasty that owns Purdue Pharma, which manufactures and markets OxyContin, one of the drugs at the centre of America's opioids crisis. The family is well known for their generous philanthropy towards the world's top cultural institutions, including Guggenheim Museum, the National Portrait Gallery, Tate in Britain, Yale University and the Serpentine Gallery, to name a few. Two branches of the family control Purdue Pharma.
Isaac Sackler and Sophie Greenberg were Jewish immigrants who arrived in New York before the First World War. They had three sons. The first, Arthur, died before OxyContin was invented. The second, Mortimer, who died aged 93 in 2010, was a former chief executive of Purdue Pharma. The third, Raymond, died aged 97 in 2017 and was also a former chief executive of Purdue Pharma.
It was Arthur, a psychiatrist and pharmaceutical marketeer, who started the family business dynasty. He and his brothers bought a small company called Purdue Frederick; among their first products were laxatives and prescription earwax remover.
Arthur's branch of the family has not been involved in Purdue for many years and his daughter, Elizabeth, has spoken out against it, saying the company's role in America's drugs crisis is "morally abhorrent".
The lawsuits that were brought by the attorneys general of New York and Massachussetts named eight Sacklers. This includes Kathe, Mortimer, Richard, Jonathan and Ilene Sackler Lefcourt, who are all the children of either Mortimer or Raymond. Then there's Theresa Sackler, who is Mortimer senior's widow; Beverly, Raymond's widow; and David Sackler, Raymond's grandson.
Members of the Sackler family are rarely seen in public.
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-2 C Morikawa (US), M Laird (Sco), C Tringale (US)
Selected others: -1 P Casey (Eng), R Fowler (US), T Hatton (Eng)
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1 L Westwood (Eng), J Spieth (US)
3 R McIlroy (NI)
4 D Johnson (US)
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Education: Mr Al Bahar was born in 1979 and graduated in 2008 from the Judicial Institute. He took after his father, who was one of the first Emirati lawyers
Benefits of first-time home buyers' scheme
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Name: Brendalle Belaza
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Favourite place in Abu Dhabi: NYUAD campus
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Mercer, the investment consulting arm of US services company Marsh & McLennan, expects its wealth division to at least double its assets under management (AUM) in the Middle East as wealth in the region continues to grow despite economic headwinds, a company official said.
Mercer Wealth, which globally has $160 billion in AUM, plans to boost its AUM in the region to $2-$3bn in the next 2-3 years from the present $1bn, said Yasir AbuShaban, a Dubai-based principal with Mercer Wealth.
“Within the next two to three years, we are looking at reaching $2 to $3 billion as a conservative estimate and we do see an opportunity to do so,” said Mr AbuShaban.
Mercer does not directly make investments, but allocates clients’ money they have discretion to, to professional asset managers. They also provide advice to clients.
“We have buying power. We can negotiate on their (client’s) behalf with asset managers to provide them lower fees than they otherwise would have to get on their own,” he added.
Mercer Wealth’s clients include sovereign wealth funds, family offices, and insurance companies among others.
From its office in Dubai, Mercer also looks after Africa, India and Turkey, where they also see opportunity for growth.
Wealth creation in Middle East and Africa (MEA) grew 8.5 per cent to $8.1 trillion last year from $7.5tn in 2015, higher than last year’s global average of 6 per cent and the second-highest growth in a region after Asia-Pacific which grew 9.9 per cent, according to consultancy Boston Consulting Group (BCG). In the region, where wealth grew just 1.9 per cent in 2015 compared with 2014, a pickup in oil prices has helped in wealth generation.
BCG is forecasting MEA wealth will rise to $12tn by 2021, growing at an annual average of 8 per cent.
Drivers of wealth generation in the region will be split evenly between new wealth creation and growth of performance of existing assets, according to BCG.
Another general trend in the region is clients’ looking for a comprehensive approach to investing, according to Mr AbuShaban.
“Institutional investors or some of the families are seeing a slowdown in the available capital they have to invest and in that sense they are looking at optimizing the way they manage their portfolios and making sure they are not investing haphazardly and different parts of their investment are working together,” said Mr AbuShaban.
Some clients also have a higher appetite for risk, given the low interest-rate environment that does not provide enough yield for some institutional investors. These clients are keen to invest in illiquid assets, such as private equity and infrastructure.
“What we have seen is a desire for higher returns in what has been a low-return environment specifically in various fixed income or bonds,” he said.
“In this environment, we have seen a de facto increase in the risk that clients are taking in things like illiquid investments, private equity investments, infrastructure and private debt, those kind of investments were higher illiquidity results in incrementally higher returns.”
The Abu Dhabi Investment Authority, one of the largest sovereign wealth funds, said in its 2016 report that has gradually increased its exposure in direct private equity and private credit transactions, mainly in Asian markets and especially in China and India. The authority’s private equity department focused on structured equities owing to “their defensive characteristics.”
Results
2pm: Serve U – Maiden (TB) Dh60,000 (Dirt) 1,400m; Winner: Violent Justice, Pat Dobbs (jockey), Doug Watson (trainer)
2.30pm: Al Shafar Investment – Conditions (TB) Dh100,000 (D) 1,400m; Winner: Desert Wisdom, Bernardo Pinheiro, Ahmed Al Shemaili
3pm: Commercial Bank of Dubai – Handicap (TB) Dh68,000 (D) 1,200m; Winner: Fawaareq, Sam Hitchcott, Doug Watson
3.30pm: Shadwell – Rated Conditions (TB) Dh100,000 (D) 1,600m; Winner: Down On Da Bayou, Xavier Ziani, Salem bin Ghadayer
4pm: Dubai Real Estate Centre – Maiden (TB) Dh60,000 (D) 1,600m; Winner: Rakeez, Patrick Cosgrave, Bhupat Seemar
4.30pm: Al Redha Insurance Brokers – Handicap (TB) Dh78,000 (D) 1,800m; Winner: Capla Crusader, Bernardo Pinheiro, Rashed Bouresly
