Emaar Properties Weighs $3 Billion Buyout of Emaar Development

Emaar Properties is weighing a buyout of the stake in Emaar Development it does not already own, a deal that could reach $3 billion and would bring its Dubai-listed development arm entirely under the parent company.

The Dubai-based builder, whose projects include the Burj Khalifa, scheduled a board meeting this week to assess the proposal and has taken legal and financial advice on it. Deliberations continue and no decision has been reached. Plans for the transaction could be announced within days. Emaar did not respond to a request for confirmation.

Emaar Properties already holds just over 79% of Emaar Development, which is listed on the Dubai Financial Market and had a market capitalization of $13.68 billion. A buyout of the remainder would consolidate ownership of the group's UAE property development business.

Sales and profit growth

Emaar Development reported first-half 2026 revenue of $3.6 billion (AED 13.3 billion), 34% higher year on year. Net profit before tax climbed 41% to $2.1 billion (AED 7.8 billion). Property sales in the six months reached $6.1 billion (AED 22.4 billion), and the revenue backlog, covering units sold but not yet booked, stood at $36.9 billion (AED 135.7 billion) at the end of June, up 6%.

At the group level, Emaar Properties posted first-half net profit before tax of $3.5 billion (AED 12.8 billion), an increase of 23%. Revenue rose 21% to $6.5 billion (AED 23.9 billion), EBITDA gained 24% to $3.5 billion (AED 12.9 billion), and property sales totalled $7.2 billion (AED 26.6 billion). Group revenue backlog, the value of signed sales still to be recognised, was $44.9 billion (AED 164.9 billion) at the close of June, up 13% year on year.

Emaar said its UAE development business has taken a measured approach to launching new projects against an evolving regional environment, while continuing to build out existing sites and hand over completed units to buyers.

Dubai's expanding market

Dubai's property market has grown sharply in recent years, including through the post-pandemic boom. In June, Emaar set out plans for an urban district valued at close to $55 billion, designed to house 150,000 residents. Emaar Properties ranked 17th on a 2026 list of the region's 100 most valuable companies; Emaar Development placed 32nd.

A full buyout would give Emaar Properties direct claim on the earnings and the $36.9 billion backlog of its development arm rather than sharing them with minority holders, at a moment when cash from handovers is rising and the pipeline behind it is unusually deep. The $3 billion figure, if it holds, sits below Emaar Development's $13.68 billion market value for the whole company, since the parent already owns most of it. Buying in the minority would also simplify a structure that has kept the development business separately listed.