Apollo Global Management has agreed to take a minority equity stake in Mubadala Capital, the alternative asset management arm of Abu Dhabi’s Mubadala Investment Company, and to commit capital across its strategies.
A person familiar with the matter told Reuters the stake is nearly 10%. Apollo declined to comment on the size of the stake. Apollo chief executive Marc Rowan told The National that the firm’s equity investment was “a little over a billion dollars.” Together with other strategic investors, the group is expected to commit an aggregate $5 billion to Mubadala Capital’s investment strategies at initial close.
Mubadala Investment Company remains the majority shareholder. Apollo joins the founders of Silver Rock Financial as an equity holder. Mubadala Capital will continue to operate independently, with its existing management team retaining full authority over investment decisions. The transaction is expected to close in the fourth quarter of 2026, subject to regulatory approvals.
From allocator to platform
The deal is one more example of a Gulf sovereign platform moving beyond pure allocation. Mubadala Capital already runs more than $60 billion in core alternatives across five strategies and has spent several years building its own asset-management business rather than simply placing capital with external managers.
Apollo’s minority stake brings outside equity into Mubadala Capital. The accompanying capital commitments are intended to help the firm broaden its investor base and expand its strategies.
Rowan described Mubadala as “probably the most advanced” among sovereign funds in building its own asset manager and said the investment was intended to help accelerate that growth, particularly in North America.
This is different from the more common pattern in which a Western manager simply receives a large commitment from a Gulf LP. Here Apollo is buying into the platform itself.
A multi-year relationship, not a first meeting
The investment builds on existing ties. Apollo and Mubadala have previously worked together on origination platforms, private credit, and strategy seeding. John Zito, co-president of Apollo Asset Management, said Mubadala “has been a trusted partner in seeding and scaling a number of our strategies over the years” and that the new stake “reflects our conviction in their business.”
Hani Barhoush, CEO of Mubadala Capital, said the move accelerates the firm’s ambition to connect capital with private-market opportunities and noted that Apollo has been “a trusted partner to Mubadala and across Abu Dhabi for many years.”
Apollo reported approximately $1.05 trillion in assets under management as of June 30, 2026.
What changes and what does not
The structure gives Apollo a direct ownership interest in a Gulf-based alternative asset manager that is expanding internationally, while also placing fresh capital into its funds. It does not, on the terms disclosed, alter governance of the parent Mubadala Investment Company or create any obligation for Apollo to co-invest on every future deal. The $5 billion figure is a commitment to strategies at initial close, not a single vehicle or a guaranteed deployment schedule.
Open questions
Two points remain unclear from the public materials. First, the precise size of Apollo’s stake has not been confirmed in the joint announcement. Reporting has put the stake at nearly 10%, while Rowan has put the firm’s equity investment at “a little over a billion dollars.” Second, the identity and size of the other strategic investors joining as minority shareholders have not been disclosed.
Whether the partnership produces measurable co-investment flow or simply functions as a strategic equity holding will become clearer once the transaction closes and the first capital is deployed. For other Gulf platforms still deciding how far to open their own asset-management arms to outside capital, the outcome will be watched.
Author: Andy Samu
See Also:
Apollo Global’s $5.9 Billion Earnings in 2025: What the Numbers Really Mean | Disruption Banking
Abu Dhabi’s $2B Power Play with Brevan Howard Signals Hedge Fund Boom | Disruption Banking
Andrew Samu
Andrew Samu, Editor-at-Large at Disruption Banking, shapes the publication’s global coverage of banking, capital markets and digital assets. Based at London’s Level39, he combines market analysis with a strong commercial perspective, informed in part by his role as Commercial Director at Verita HR.
