Abu Dhabi's IHC teams up with US investment arm in boost to Trump's foreign policy

Abu Dhabi's International Holding Company, the UAE’s largest company by market capitalisation, has teamed up with the US International Development Finance Corporation (DFC) to co-invest in key sectors, in what the latter says is a “crucial step” in President Donald Trump's foreign policy.

The agreement involves co-operation in industries including energy, mining, logistics, maritime operations, food security, agriculture and technologies including data centres, IHC said on Thursday in a filing to the Abu Dhabi Securities Exchange, where its shares trade.

Under the framework agreement both firms will deploy capital at scale, while building supply chains and allowing investment to and from both regions, it said.

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The agreement was signed in Abu Dhabi in the presence of Sheikh Tahnoon bin Zayed, chairman of IHC, Deputy Ruler of Abu Dhabi and National Security Adviser, IHC chief executive Syed Shueb and DFC chief executive Ben Black.

The DFC – the US government's international investment arm – sees the “work with IHC [as] a crucial step in executing President Trump’s foreign policy vision and deepens the US-UAE bilateral relationship”, Mr Black said.

Both sides will focus on investments that “strengthen and expand economic opportunity and advance shared US-UAE strategic goals – all while making a return for the US taxpayer”, he said.

The UAE and the US are advancing their economic and bilateral relationships, with the primary focus on technology in the artificial intelligence-led boom.

America is the world's top economy and the UAE, the Arab world's second-largest, is its key partner in the Middle East. Mr Trump embarked on a high-profile tour of the Gulf last May in which trillions of dollars worth of investment deals were forged.

The latest technology-focused collaboration between the UAE and the US is Pax Silica, the coalition of a small number of “trusted” countries that aim to optimise supply chains for AI and tech.

“President Trump has been very public about his fondness for the UAE dating back to his trip here,” US undersecretary of state for economic affairs Jacob Helberg told The National at the Pax Silica signing on Wednesday.

“He's a big believer in the UAE … and our whole administration really appreciates the UAE's leadership.”

In 2024, bilateral trade between the two nations hit a record $34.4 billion, with the US exporting more than $26.9 billion of goods and services to the Emirates, which was an 8.5 per cent annual growth, latest data from the UAE Embassy in Washington shows.

That resulted in a $19.5 billion trade surplus for the US, marking its third-largest trade surplus globally, the embassy said.

The UAE maintains trade with all 50 US states, supporting about 161,000 American jobs, it added.

UAE investments in the US have surpassed $1 trillion, with the Emirates having recently committed to investing $1.4 trillion in the American economy over the next decade, the Abu Dhabi Department of Economic Development said.

The biggest areas of collaboration include technology, renewable energy, aviation and space technology, reflecting the strength of non-oil sectors that account for more than three quarters of the UAE's gross domestic product, the embassy said.

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With the UAE pushing to position itself as a global AI leader as it diversifies away from hydrocarbons, the country has aligned its goals with the US, considered the world's top tech market.

In November, the US authorised the export of tech titan Nvidia's powerful AI chips to UAE AI company G42, along with Saudi tech start-up Humain.

The UAE has also teamed up with the US to develop the Stargate AI campus, which will include five gigawatts of capacity for AI data centres in Abu Dhabi.

“This strategic framework with DFC represents a powerful alignment of capital, capability and conviction,” Mr Shueb said.

“We are creating a scalable mechanism to deliver transformational investments across critical industries … to unlock long-term value, strengthen resilient supply chains, and drive sustainable economic growth across key markets that matter to both our nations,” he said.

IHC, formed in 1999, has emerged as the Middle East's most valuable holding company and one of the world's largest investment firms with a market capitalisation of about Dh878.5 billion ($239.2 billion).

It has more than 1,400 subsidiaries across asset management, health care, real estate, financial services, IT and more.

Abu Dhabi's IHC teams up with US investment arm in boost to Trump's foreign policy

Co-investments lined up with American government agency in energy, mining, logistics, maritime operations, food security and technology