UAE and US announce co-investment partnership

• Abu Dhabi’s IHC in deal with DFC
• US government’s investment arm
• ‘Crucial step’ for Trump’s goals

Abu Dhabi conglomerate International Holding Company reached a deal with the US government’s international investment arm to jointly target sectors and markets of “mutual strategic interest”.

Critical minerals, energy, logistics, healthcare, technology and agriculture are among the sectors IHC identified in a press release yesterday as priority areas for co-investing with the US International Development Finance Corporation (DFC).

IHC said the effort will focus on “high growth” emerging and frontier markets, especially those that anchor “global trade and connectivity corridors”. 

Success will be measured in the effective economic benefits accruing to the two partners, such as enhanced domestic employment opportunities and more innovation, according to the press release. 

“This strategic framework with DFC represents a powerful alignment of capital, capability and conviction,” said IHC CEO Syed Basar Shueb in a statement.

Ben Black, chief executive of the seven-year-old DFC, called the collaboration a “crucial step” in advancing the Trump administration’s strategic goals. 

“Both nations will be positioned to deliver high‑return projects and promote world‑class investment standards,” he said.

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A senior-level joint committee will identify opportunities and push for rapid execution of transactions that deploy capital “at scale,” according to the release.

Sheikh Tahnoon Bin Zayed Al Nahyan, the UAE’s national security adviser who chairs IHC, among other roles, posted on X about his meeting with Black upon the signing of the agreement.

“We exchanged views on opportunities for cooperation across vital sectors, highlighting the strength of economic ties between the United Arab Emirates and the United States, and exploring pathways that support sustainable growth, resilient supply chains and greater global connectivity,” he wrote.