NBS

Chief of Staff / GCC Advisor/Expert (Saudi Arabia, UAE, Kuwait, Oman, Qatar, Bahrain). Board Member.

[NBS @NajatBenchSave]

@karenwr75084451 @therosebudpod @GylesB1 @TRH_London Excellent, then do the formidable Damian Lewis!

[Building Morocco @BuildingMorocco]

🇲🇦🏙️On April 13, the Mohammed VI Tower was officially inaugurated by Crown Prince Moulay El Hassan, on the instructions of King Mohammed VI, on the right bank of the Bouregreg River.

More than a landmark, the tower introduces a new way to experience Rabat and Salé, from the ground to the sky… From its panoramic observatory to its mixed-use spaces, it offers a perspective Morocco has never seen before.

A bold architectural statement, designed not just to rise high, but to shape the future of urban living, smarter and more sustainably.

#Building_Morocco #Rabat #Sale #Architecture #MohammedVITower #Morocco #2M

[NBS @NajatBenchSave]

Abu Dhabi quietly rewired its sovereign wealth architecture in a move that most of the global institutional community has yet to fully absorb. The Supreme Council for Financial and Economic Affairs folded one of the world's top ten sovereign wealth funds into a brand-new entity that had existed for only a matter of weeks. The resulting vehicle now commands over $300 billion in assets, is chaired by the Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi, and effectively eliminates the fund that had served as the emirate's primary domestic investment engine for nearly a decade. @Adq_Official

[NBS @NajatBenchSave]

@benjitaylor Try it @elonmusk and see what happens..

[وزارة الاستثمار @MISA]

The Kingdom’s investment landscape shines in 2025 as Saudi Arabia’s FDI inflows grew by around five times compared to 2017. Net FDI inflows expanded by 53% in 2025 compared to the previous year, highlighting strong investor confidence.
#InvestSaudi

[NBS @NajatBenchSave]

@KP24 Well I spent some time with the local cricket club in Oxfordshire, doing a huge clean up ahead of the season. We have a huge junior team and excellent girls and women's teams, we are fundraising to renovate the first floor conversion if anyone in your circle can help?

[NBS @NajatBenchSave]

@ChefGov_ma تهانينا على هذه المبادرة الجيدة

[NBS @NajatBenchSave]

Will the AI investment work for the GCC?
GCC countries are aggressively channeling sovereign wealth funds and national strategies into AI as a cornerstone for economic diversification beyond oil. With over $30 billion already committed to AI data centers and digital infrastructure by early 2026, the region aims to add up to $320 billion to its economy by 2030. This positions the GCC as a global AI hub, leveraging policy clarity from visions like Saudi Arabia's Vision 2030 and UAE's AI Strategy 2031.
GCC sovereign wealth funds like Mubadala ($12.9B in AI/digital in 2025), PIF, ADIA, QIA, and KIA lead with $66 billion deployed globally into AI, semiconductors, and U.S.-centric assets. Key projects include UAE's $8-10B Stargate UAE (1GW data centers with OpenAI, NVIDIA), Qatar's $1B Syntys cloud, and Saudi partnerships. Funds prioritise scale, control, and alignment with national agendas like energy-efficient compute.
@Mubadala @PIF_en @AIatMeta @OpenAI @sama @awscloud @Google @X

[NBS @NajatBenchSave]

Saudi Arabia’s 🇸🇦 @FIIKSA has attracted more than 120–250 billion dollars in investment agreements since 2017 across technology, clean energy, healthcare, education and infrastructure, positioning FII as a visible deal‑making platform. It needs to build a permanent “deal office” function that curates, diligences and packages Saudi and regional opportunities (giga‑projects, funds, co‑investments, platform companies) into bankable propositions that global investors can move on between events. Explicitly segment LPs, GPs, corporates and sovereigns by risk appetite, return profile and thematic interest (AI & data, green energy, tourism, healthcare, logistics), then design curated tracks and closed‑door sessions that present Saudi opportunities tailored to each segment. Build credibility via governance, impact and transparency. Operate as a global “ideas + capital” lab for Saudi. Great momentum!
@PIF_en @PIFSaudi @saudi_aramco @SaudiVision2030 @UKinSaudiArabia @markets @FT

[NBS @NajatBenchSave]

@HussainSajwani عيد مبارك 🌙✨
أتمنى لكم ولعائلتكم السلام والسعادة والبركة دائمًا.

[NBS @NajatBenchSave]

@jacksonhinkle Short, contained disruption (days–few weeks): sharp but temporary oil spike, modest global inflation bump, short‑lived hit to growth and trade volumes, more like a “scare” than a structural break. But if this is prolonged...well..

[NBS @NajatBenchSave]

Saudi Arabia’s @HUMAIN:
Humain is 100% owned by the @PIF_en Investment Fund and explicitly mandated to lead Saudi’s national AI development, which gives it deep political protection and patient capital. Capital and infrastructure scale: It has a financing framework of up to 1.2 billion USD to build 250 MW of AI data‑centre capacity and targets around 6 GW by 2034, plus JV structures with stc and others. Strategic partnerships: Deals with @xai, @nvidia, @AMD, @Groq, @airtrunk and local infrastructure partners give it access to cutting‑edge compute and know‑how. So what is the risk? Strategic downgrading: @HUMAIN is more likely to miss its global‑top‑3 ambition and settle into a regional AI infrastructure utility than to implode. Quiet restructuring: If it underperforms, PIF can recapitalise, merge, or refocus the company while keeping the brand alive, as has happened with other Vision 2030 vehicles. Opportunity cost: The worst realistic outcome spending tens of billions to end up with a necessary but low‑return national AI platform. It MUST do well!

[NBS @NajatBenchSave]

Despite ongoing tensions in the GCC, @jaredkushner is now trying to raise $5 billion more for Affinity Partners, with a focus on Middle Eastern governments and sovereign wealth funds. Affinity’s AUM has already grown to roughly $4.8 billion after fresh injections from Abu Dhabi and Qatar by late 2024. Core elements of his GCC strategy = Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund (PIF) remains the cornerstone, having put in around $2 billion in 2021 and securing a preferential right to invest in future Affinity fundraises, effectively anchoring new GCC rounds. Affinity pitches this relationship as “strategic,” using the PIF commitment to validate the platform in conversations with other Gulf allocators. The GCC remains open for business.
@FT

[NBS @NajatBenchSave]

@FT Debt markets have slowed: GCC dollar bond and sukuk issuance has dropped sharply since the attack on Iran war began, with many deals put on hold as risk premiums rise and volatility spikes = liquidity pressure.

[NBS @NajatBenchSave]

Stability is key, as well as attracting FDI - how Gulf SWFs manage around $5 trillion.
Scale and concentration: GCC funds control about 40% of global sovereign wealth assets, with PIF, ADIA, KIA, QIA, Mubadala and ADQ among the world’s largest single pools of capital. Dual mandate: They are no longer just savings vehicles for oil surpluses; they are instruments of foreign policy, industrial strategy and soft power, deploying capital to secure technology, supply chains and geopolitical alliances. Global diversification: Gulf SWFs have pushed heavily into North America, Europe and Asia, especially in private equity, private credit, infrastructure, logistics, technology and energy transition assets. Home‑market nation‑building: At the same time, they are anchor investors in domestic “vision” agendas – giga‑projects, ports, rail, airports, renewables, hydrogen, data centres, and smart cities designed to rewire national economies beyond oil. Long‑term, patient capital: Their scale and lack of short‑term withdrawal risk allow them to hold illiquid assets and ride cycles, making them natural owners of infrastructure, real assets and long‑duration growth platforms.
@Mubadala @PIF_en @SaudiInUK @OmanNewsAgency @MOISaudiArabia @Alwaleed_Talal @HussainSajwani

[NBS @NajatBenchSave]

What could be a scenario for the Iranians is that the Strait of Hormuz currently is less a fee‑for‑service asset for Iran and more a strategic choke point that underpins its bargaining power and the value of its oil exports. But it could start charging a 'transit fee' as a novel charging system, as international insurance providers ramp up their war-risk insurance premiums..

[NBS @NajatBenchSave]

The war is creating a more bifurcated GCC investment landscape: energy and hard‑asset plays are buoyed by higher prices and capex, while trade‑exposed and tourism assets face clear headwinds. Higher oil prices support near‑term fiscal and current‑account positions, allowing Gulf sovereigns to keep spending and maintain strong sovereign credit profiles, but a prolonged conflict raises tail‑risk around production and export continuity.
@FT @BBCWorld

[NBS @NajatBenchSave]

I don't like this model. However, @elonmusk , if Tesla offered four different Cybertruck models available for pre-order, the main result would be higher total reservation volume but more complex demand management and production planning. But, higher pre-order numbers, because more price and performance points let Tesla capture buyers who find current trims too expensive or too extreme...

[NBS @NajatBenchSave]

@Megatron_ron Unlikely to happen.

[NBS @NajatBenchSave]

Strategic takeaway for GCC investments
Net‑net, GCC investments today are characterised by assertive outward deployment of sovereign capital, active courting of diversified FDI, and a deliberate pivot into technology, sustainability and infrastructure, all while managing heightened geopolitical and security risk as a permanent structural factor rather than a temporary shock.
@PIF_en @MiddleEastEye @markets @AlArabiya_Eng @arabnews