Global private markets firm Pantheon has opened its first Abu Dhabi office in ADGM as it expands its presence in the Middle East and seeks to tap growing demand from investors across the Gulf.
The London-headquartered firm, with about $84 billion in assets under management, is the latest company to join the rapidly growing list of global asset managers calling the emirate’s financial hub home despite war-driven uncertainties.
A dedicated office in Abu Dhabi will help Pantheon to deepen its relationships with a diverse range of investors across Gulf countries and strengthen the firm’s presence in the region, the company said on Tuesday. It added that the ADGM office extends its global footprint to 13 locations across four continents.
Pantheon has appointed Firas Mallah as managing director and head of the Middle East. Mr Mallah, who joins Pantheon from investment firm Sagard, will lead Pantheon’s capital formation efforts with sovereign wealth funds, family offices and financial institutions across the Middle East, the company said.
The move comes as investors in the region increasingly seek exposure to private equity, infrastructure and private credit.
“The Middle East is one of the fastest-growing sources of capital in private markets, and investors here are increasingly sophisticated about how they want exposure to the asset class,” Mr Mallah said. “Establishing our presence in ADGM reflects our strong commitment to the region as we deepen our long-term engagement across the wider GCC.”
Pantheon’s expansion adds to the growing number of global investment firms in Abu Dhabi, where ADGM has been building its asset management and private markets ecosystem.
ADGM, the largest international financial centre in the Middle East and Africa region by the number of active licences, has continued to attract global institutions despite the seven-month Iran war.
The UAE, like its Gulf and wider Middle Eastern peers, initially faced waves of missile and drone attacks from Tehran after the conflict broke out on February 28. However, the war has not deterred international financial firms from setting up an operational base in Abu Dhabi.
A base in Abu Dhabi provides global investors and money managers with opportunities to expand regional operations and work closely with some of the world's largest sovereign wealth funds, as well as large family offices and institutional partners.
UAE capital has in recent months attracted high-profile companies such as private credit lender Blue Owl Capital, tech-focused US private equity company Vista Equity Partners, Man Group, the world’s largest listed hedge fund, Barings, Bain Capital, Cantor and Swiss derivative investment company Adapt Investment Managers.
The most recent firm to set up base in ADGM was Europe’s largest private markets investment firm EQT. The firm, which manages $389 billion in client assets, said last week that it would use Abu Dhabi as the base for its new Middle East platform as it seeks investment opportunities across the Gulf.
Collectively, asset managers that established operations in ADGM in the first half of the year oversee more than $2.1 trillion in global assets under management, the financial centre said earlier this month.
Assets under management at ADGM grew 54 per cent annually in the first six months of 2026, with 49,027 professionals now based at Al Maryah Island and Al Reem Island, an increase of 34 per cent on the same period last year.
Pantheon’s expansion adds to the growing presence of global investment firms in Abu Dhabi, where ADGM has been building its asset management and private markets ecosystem.
Arvind Ramamurthy, chief market development officer at ADGM, said Pantheon’s decision to establish its Middle East presence in Abu Dhabi reflected the appeal of the financial centre to global private market firms seeking to engage with institutional investors in the region.
Pantheon also said its secondaries strategies are particularly relevant to investors seeking access to mature portfolios while reducing some of the risks associated with investing in newly established funds.
The firm, which pioneered private equity secondaries in 1988, has since expanded into private credit and infrastructure secondaries.
Secondaries allow investors to acquire existing stakes in private market funds or assets, potentially providing earlier distributions and reducing the so-called J-curve associated with traditional private market investments.
