Blackstone Inc. is partnering with Abu Dhabi’s Lunate on a new platform that will target investments worth $5 billion across the wider region, as the US private equity giant looks to build on its portfolio of logistics assets.
The firms will focus mainly on new developments, and evaluate acquisitions as well as sale‑and‑leaseback deals, according to a statement on Monday. Their new venture, which will have dedicated teams across the region, is expected to bring in external investors over time.
The platform will focus on the six-nation Gulf Cooperation Council that includes Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, Qatar and Kuwait, where demand for logistics assets have been bolstered by greater economic growth, as well as rising e-commerce and manufacturing activity.
“The profound economic transformation underway in the GCC, driven by pro-growth policies, favourable demographic shifts and broad-based economic diversification, is creating powerful momentum for sectors like logistics,” Blackstone’s President and Chief Operating Officer Jon Gray said in the statement.
The firm has amassed a global warehouse portfolio valued at nearly $170 billion, making it the largest owner of logistics assets globally. Just last month, Blackstone agreed to acquire a $2.3 billion portfolio of warehouses in France and sealed a takeover of a British industrial property landlord.
For its latest venture, it’s teaming up with Lunate, which was set up in 2023 and now oversees assets of more than $110 billion. The new vehicle will help support the development of new infrastructure to drive growth across the GCC bloc, Lunate Managing Partner Khalifa Al Suwaidi said.
The Abu Dhabi firm has already unveiled a string of deals since its inception, including a recent investment in Brevan Howard Asset Management. Earlier this year, it agreed to anchor TPG Inc.’s new sports fund, and in 2024, bought a stake in the largest office tower in Dubai’s financial hub.
Blackstone is the world’s largest alternative asset manager, with about $1.2 trillion in assets under management, and has been active in the Middle East for many years. The firm is in early talks to invest billions of dollars with Saudi Arabia’s new artificial intelligence company, Bloomberg News has reported, and recently backed Dubai-based Property Finder.
