Alpha Dhabi Doubles Private Credit Commitment to $1B in Mubadala JV

Alpha Dhabi Holding has doubled its commitment to a private credit joint venture with Mubadala Capital to $1 billion. The amended partnership agreement, announced Monday, raises Alpha Dhabi's ownership in MICAD Credit JV to 40% from 20%.

MICAD Credit JV manages about $1.7 billion across 45 portfolio companies. The new agreement broadens the venture's mandate beyond US and European direct lending. It will now pursue additional private credit strategies through Mubadala Capital's global relationships, giving the platform a wider aperture for deals.

Hamad Salem Al Ameri, managing director and group CEO of Alpha Dhabi, said the larger commitment reflects private credit's importance to Alpha Dhabi's investment portfolio. In a statement, Al Ameri noted that the increased commitment gives the company access to a broader range of global opportunities.

Private credit is gaining a larger foothold in the UAE and the wider Gulf. Alternative lenders increasingly operate alongside traditional banks in the region, and the market is becoming more established even though it is relatively young. According to Dentons' May 2026 report, borrowers want financing that is faster and more flexible than conventional bank loans. Dentons tied the market's expansion to tighter bank risk appetites, demand for flexible financing, and growing sophistication among regional investors.

Private credit is especially useful for mid-market transactions, complex financing structures, and time-sensitive deals. Borrowers gain flexibility on loan maturity, deal size, and covenants. That flexibility comes at a cost, though. Private credit is pricier than traditional bank financing.

PwC estimates cited by Institutional Investor in January put the Gulf and Egypt private credit market at about $5 billion in 2024. Annual growth of 15% to 30% could take that to $11 billion to $20 billion by 2030. That implies the market would more than double at the low end and quadruple at the high end.

Abu Dhabi is positioning itself to capture more of that growth. The emirate wants to develop a financial center where private credit transactions can be originated, structured, and managed locally, as part of its broader economic diversification plans and the UAE's push to build up financial services. Mubadala and the Abu Dhabi Investment Authority are already major global investors in private credit, using fund commitments and co-investments for exposure. Mubadala's private credit portfolio reached roughly $20 billion in 2025, with a significant portion deployed in North America and Europe.

Alpha Dhabi's doubling of its stake signals more than a bigger bet on one fund. It shows a regional heavyweight taking a more direct role in owning and shaping a private credit platform, rather than simply committing capital to Mubadala's existing strategies. That shift mirrors the broader move by Abu Dhabi institutions to bring credit expertise in-house as part of the financial center push.

With a 40% stake in MICAD Credit JV, Alpha Dhabi owns a larger share of a lending platform that is no longer limited to direct lending in the West. The Gulf itself is becoming a staging ground for the next phase of private credit growth.