Abu Dhabi – Mubasher: Abu Dhabi-based Mubadala Investment intends to invest up to $15 billion in SoftBank Group Corp.’s Vision Fund, Bloomberg reported on Sunday.
The Abu Dhabi government’s investment arm is also looking to create two new venture capital funds in order to establish its technology holdings, the news agency added.
“The SoftBank fund will be 'wrapped up' in two to three weeks with about $95 billion,” said Ibrahim Ajami, head of venture capital at Mubadala Capital, the sovereign wealth fund’s investment arm.
Mubadala plans to implement its investments within the coming five years, Ajami added.
“This is a significant opportunity for good financial returns,” Ajami said in an interview with Bloomberg in Abu Dhabi on Sunday, highlighting SoftBank’s CEO Masayoshi Son’s track record over the past three decades in the technology sector.
Sovereign wealth funds across the GCC have been seeking opportunities in new areas, such as technology, to decrease their reliance on volatile oil markets.
Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund (PIF) is said to be planning a $45-billion investment to form a partnership with SoftBank to establish its fund after directing $50 billion of the Kingdom’s reserves to investments abroad, almost all of which are in the technology sector over the past year.
Outside the UAE, Mubadala already owns 100% of California-based semiconductor manufacturer Globalfoundries Inc., as well as a stake in Advanced Micro Devices Inc. Domestically, the investment firm has a stake in Dubai-listed Emirates Integrated Telecommunications Co (du), and owns satellite operator Al Yah Satellite Communications Co.
“Mubadala plans to start two technology venture capital funds in June to invest in companies with an annual revenue of between $1 million and $10 million,” Ajami indicated, noting that the company will run one of the funds by itself, while the other will be managed externally.
Earlier in 2017, Mubadala completed its merger with Abu Dhabi’s International Petroleum Investment Co (IPIC); thus, becoming the world’s fourteenth largest fund with $125 billion in assets, according to the Sovereign Wealth Fund Institute (SWFI).
