Private Capital Summit brings together lenders, buyers, lawyers & administrators shaping regional deals with keynote by BlueFive Capital founder Hazem Ben-Gacem
DUBAI , DUBAI, UNITED ARAB EMIRATES, September 11, 2026 /EINPresswire.com/ -- For much of the past decade the Gulf was a place capital arrived from elsewhere, but the region now finances its own transactions, provides its own routes out of them and increasingly writes the rules under which they are done. That shift was visible in last year's deal figures, when regional mergers
and acquisitions reached a record $106.1 billion across 884 transactions, according to EY, as owners sold stakes to one another and raised liquidity through private markets rather than waiting on the public listing window. It is against that backdrop that the Caplink Group's Private Capital Summit, Dubai convenes at The Lana, Dubai on 15 September, bringing the lenders, buyers, lawyers and administrators who build these deals together for a single working day.Across the region, regulators are overhauling the frameworks that govern investment funds on parallel tracks. Rather than wait for the outcomes, institutions operating across these jurisdictions are building governance capacity of their own, appointing senior legal and compliance officers, several of whom sit on the summit's fund structuring panel.
This private capital event differentiates itself from others by bringing together the firms which structure, finance, administer, and advise on transactions to directly chair the sessions and put the questions to the regional and international institutions that put the money to work. Across the day, senior practitioners lead working sessions on continuation vehicles, net asset value financing, operational due diligence and fund structuring, examining how deals in the region are actually put together, financed and unwound.
On credit, the region increasingly lends to itself, and the private lending panel reflects that by seating First Abu Dhabi Bank alongside global credit managers including Ares Management, HPS Investment Partners, Goldman Sachs Asset Management and Ruya Partners. Roughly $4.1 billion of structured private debt has been underwritten across the GCC startup and mid-market ecosystem, with projections for the regional private credit industry to clear $12 billion in targeted deal flow, against a regional alternative asset base managed by entities holding over $2 trillion, according to EY and ecosystem data.
On exits, owners are increasingly selling to other owners, and the secondaries panel brings together Coller Capital, StepStone, HarbourVest, Lexington Partners and Patria alongside a roundtable on continuation vehicles and GP liquidity solutions convened by Akin. Global secondary market volume reached $240 billion in 2025, a rise of 48 per cent, with GP-led transactions accounting for roughly half of that total, according to Jefferies.
On governance, much of the rulebook is now being built in-house, and the fund structuring panel is carried by the senior legal and compliance leaders of the institutions shaping that layer, among them the Emirates Investment Authority, BlueFive Capital, BC Partners, Habtoor Group and Abacus Group.
The afternoon keynote features Hazem Ben-Gacem, Founder and Chief Executive of BlueFive Capital, in conversation on the investment outlook for the second half of 2026 and the sectors and geographies where private capital sees the most compelling opportunities to deploy, with the day chaired by Matthew Benson, MENA Private Capital Leader at EY-Parthenon. Discussing the market, Benson said:
"The Gulf continues to demonstrate strong momentum as an investment destination, underpinned by economic diversification agendas, evolving regulatory frameworks, and sustained investor confidence. While geopolitical developments moderated inbound investment activity during the first half of 2026, the region remained resilient, supported by strong corporate balance sheets, sovereign wealth funds, and government-related entities deploying capital across strategic sectors aligned with long-term national priorities. Furthermore, investors have remained disciplined, prioritizing transactions that support business transformation, accelerate growth, and create long-term value. As market conditions stabilize, collaboration across the investment ecosystem will be critical to unlocking opportunities, broadening access to capital, and sustaining the region's M&A momentum."
"M&A set a record last year, and owners are increasingly choosing to raise capital and exit through private markets rather than the public route. This is not a market slowing down but a market changing shape, and the summit puts the people who build those deals, the lenders, the buyers, the lawyers and the administrators, in one room for a working day on how it actually functions," said Nawshad Noorkhan, Founder and Managing Director of CapLink Group.
The summit is supported by EY-Parthenon as Headline Partner; Clifford Chance, White & Case, A&O Shearman, Akin, Gibson Dunn, Skadden, DLA Piper, and Alvarez & Marsal as Platinum Sponsors; and FAB Bank, Abacus, and Cleary Gottlieb as Gold Sponsors. The Financial Times serves as Official Media Partner and Preqin, a part of BlackRock, as Official Data Partner.
Media accreditation requests and press enquiries should be directed to NorthStar Insights at press@northstar-insights.com.
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