Blackstone to open Dubai office in push to expand Gulf presence

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Blackstone to open Dubai office in push to expand Gulf presence: Reuters

Editorial Team

July 24, 2026

Illustrative Photo: DubaiDiplomacy.com/ai.

DUBAI,— Blackstone, the world’s largest alternative asset manager, is planning to open an office in Dubai’s International Financial Centre, marking a return to the Gulf’s biggest business hub and a move that would deepen its footprint in the region, two sources familiar with the matter told Reuters.

Blackstone exited Dubai in 2019 to base itself in Abu Dhabi, which was growing quickly at the time.

Since then, Dubai has kept expanding rapidly in the years following the COVID-19 pandemic, helped by large investment programs and residency rule changes introduced by the government.

A spokesperson for Blackstone said the firm does not comment on speculative reports, in response to a query from Reuters.

The Gulf city has drawn a growing number of wealthy individuals, and its financial center has recorded more registrations from firms including asset managers, family offices, hedge funds and private banks.

The expansion plan comes as the war in Iran has caused instability across the region, disrupting travel and supply chains in ways whose full effects are only now becoming visible.

Blackstone manages $1.35 trillion in assets and invests across private equity, real estate and credit.

The firm has been pushing further into private wealth management, hiring senior staff and focusing more on individual investors in Europe and the Middle East.

The American company has also increased its investments in the Gulf in recent years, including taking a stake in Property Finder, a Dubai-based classifieds business.

Reuters reported this month that Blackstone was among the bidders for a stake in Kuwait Petroleum Corporation’s oil pipeline network, moving ahead despite worries about the war’s impact.

Since the conflict began, Blackstone has struck a deal with Dubai aircraft lessor DAE for a joint leasing investment program and put $250 million into a UAE-based payments and data technology platform.

Jon Gray, Blackstone’s president and chief operating officer, said in a March statement that the firm sees a major opportunity to invest heavily in the UAE to build companies capable of growing at home and abroad, despite short-term challenges.

Gray also serves on the board of XRG, the international investment arm of Abu Dhabi’s state oil company.

The sources, who requested anonymity because the information is private, said Blackstone will keep its Abu Dhabi office, a city that holds most of the UAE’s oil reserves and where sovereign wealth funds manage an estimated $1.8 trillion combined.

(With files from Reuters)