Abu Dhabi’s Mubadala Investment Company will not be defined by a few weeks of disruptions and volatility caused by Iran, Waleed Al Muhairi, deputy group chief executive of Mubadala, said on Monday.
Mr Al Muhairi made the comments during the 2026 Milken Institute Global Conference in Beverly Hills, California, where he was asked about the continuing conflict affecting the region.
“The UAE, Abu Dhabi and Mubadala refuse and will not be defined by a few weeks of disruption and volatility, but rather we're going to be defined by the decades of stability we've shown as a country,” he said.
Mr Al Muhairi said the situation faced by the UAE and others in the region would result in a “V-shaped recovery” similar to what occurred after the 2008 global financial crisis and recent pandemic.
He said that Mubadala's emphasis on diversification and the ability to identify themes would help it to thrive in the months and years ahead.
“That's what makes Mubadala the best performing sovereign wealth fund with more than $100 billion assets over the last five and 10 years,” Mr Al Muhairi said, adding that the company would continue to pursue investment opportunities in the US.
“The US still remains and has been the best risk-reward that we see from a global perspective, it just hasn't changed.”
Mr Al Muhairi added that Mubadala sees plenty of opportunity for more US investments in artificial intelligence infrastructure, energy, health care and physical AI.
He told the panel moderator that 44 per cent of Mubadala's portfolio was in the US.
Blackstone's president and chief operating officer Jon Gray, who was on the panel discussing global capital markets, briefly touched on Mr Al Muhairi's comments.
Referring to the continuing conflict involving Iran, Mr Gray said the “UAE has done an extraordinary job” in the face of what many would consider to be a worrisome scenario.
The UAE again came under attack by Iran on Monday, with the Ministry of Defence saying the country's air defences had engaged 15 missiles and four drones, and reported three moderate injuries.
Also appearing during the panel discussion at Milken was Franklin Templeton chief executive Jenny Johnson, Apollo Global Management president James Zelter and BNY chief executive Robin Vince.
