The mission of Private Equity is to manage direct equity investments of client and bank assets. PE raises and manage a set of private equity funds seeded from the Bank’s capital.

The geographical focus of the private equity investments will primarily be in the GCC and Middle East and North Africa (“MENA”) region where the Bank has a competitive advantage. The Bank will capitalize on its local knowledge of the market and the rich network of contacts and relationships it enjoys in the region.

PE focuses on equity investments in various stages of their lifecycle:
 

	Gulf One is active in early stage PE's (less than 3 years of operations) ventures and in under-formation ventures both before and after financial closure
	Gulf One also makes direct equity investments in companies that have been operating for more than three years. This involves acquiring a controlling share in a running company that is operating below its potential due to deficiencies including financial, strategy, organization, management, technology or other problems that limit its valuation at the time of acquisition.
	The Bank also considers opportunistic PE transactions. This covers short-term financial investments in opportunities where the Bank will not engage in significant activities to add value to the company beyond potentially resolving its financial restrictions.

The Bank strategy is supported by management’s rich experience in the regional market, familiarity with local culture and strong professional skill in the areas of problem solving, strategy development, and strategy execution.