Temasek to Open Riyadh and Abu Dhabi Offices in 2027
Singapore's state-owned investor will add two Gulf hubs as it deepens ties in Saudi Arabia, the UAE and Qatar.
Tariq Benali Tariq Benali covers business and corporate news across the UAE and MENA for Anecdoted, tracking the deals, leadership moves and regulatory shifts behind the region's companies. tariq@anecdoted.com
Temasek plans to open offices in Riyadh and Abu Dhabi in the first half of 2027, adding two Gulf bases to the Singapore state-owned investor's network. The move is subject to statutory approvals.
The offices would serve as regional hubs for Temasek and for portfolio companies that opt to co-locate with it. Companies taking space alongside the investor would be able to draw on its regional relationships and wider network, while bringing their own sector expertise to local markets.
The expansion targets the Middle East broadly, with Saudi Arabia, the UAE and Qatar singled out. Temasek points to the region's economic transformation and national diversification programs as the source of the opportunities it intends to pursue, and says it wants to deepen engagement with institutions in Qatar and other Middle Eastern markets.
Leadership and oversight
Dilhan Pillay Sandrasegara, chief executive of Temasek Holdings, said the Middle East forms an important part of the firm's global network, and that the region's development priorities align with its investment focus.
Chia Song Hwee, chief executive of Global Investments and chairman of Middle East and Africa, said establishing a local presence would strengthen engagement with partners and improve access to investment opportunities across the region and beyond. Chia took the chairman's role on September 1 and will provide senior leadership and oversight of Temasek's engagement and long-term growth in those markets.
Ankit Khemka, managing director for the Middle East and Africa, will continue to lead the firm's strategy and expansion there.
A network of 15 offices
With Riyadh and Abu Dhabi added, Temasek's global network would reach 15 offices across 11 countries in 2027. Both offices are expected to be operational that year.
The company says the expansion reflects a long-term commitment to the Middle East and will strengthen its ability to build partnerships and pursue investments in markets undergoing economic and industrial transformation. It also improves Temasek's access to opportunities across Central Asia and Africa.
Temasek's portfolio is valued at $405.8 billion, or S$518 billion. For an investor of that size, the practical effect of a physical presence is proximity. Deals, partnerships and follow-on capital can be handled by staff in the market rather than from Singapore, and a portfolio company entering a new market arrives with an established counterpart beside it. That co-location arrangement is the part of the plan that differs from a purely financial commitment: the offices are meant to hold both the investor and the companies it backs.
Riyadh and Abu Dhabi are the two newest entries in the network, with the target set at the first half of 2027 and full operation later that year.
