Prime Highlights-
- UAE and Saudi Arabia remain MENA’s top outbound investors in the first half of 2026, completing 119 deals worth 25.5 billion dollars.
- Regional M&A activity totals 390 deals worth 46.7 billion dollars, with confidence strengthening despite geopolitical headwinds.
Key Facts-
- Dubai Aerospace Enterprise acquires Macquarie AirFinance for 7 billion dollars in one of the period’s largest outbound deals.
- Domestic deal value hits 16 billion dollars between March and June, over four times the prior year’s level.
Background-
The UAE and Saudi Arabia held their position as the Middle East and North Africa’s most active outbound investors during the first half of 2026, according to EY’s latest MENA M&A report, with cross-border investment holding steady despite a more cautious geopolitical backdrop.
EY tracked 390 completed mergers and acquisitions worth 46.7 billion dollars across the region over the six-month period, down from 434 deals valued at 58.8 billion dollars in the same period last year.
The consultancy said investor confidence strengthened toward the end of the second quarter, even as the US-Iran conflict created headwinds earlier in the period.
Outbound investment stayed resilient, with 119 deals worth 25.5 billion dollars completed during the period. The UAE and Saudi Arabia led overseas acquisitions, targeting technology, transportation, financial services and energy opportunities, highlighted by Dubai Aerospace Enterprise’s 7 billion dollar acquisition of Macquarie AirFinance and Saudi Electronic Gaming Holding Co.’s 6 billion dollar acquisition of Shanghai Moonton Technology.
Domestic transactions also drove growth, with deal value reaching 16 billion dollars between March and June, more than four times the level recorded in the same window a year earlier.
Large strategic investments in real estate, power and utilities, and technology fueled the rise, while technology attracted the largest share of inbound investment on the back of demand for AI, enterprise digitalisation, software platforms and technology-enabled business services.
EY noted that May and June accounted for 61 percent of second-quarter deal volume and 79 percent of deal value, pointing to improving market confidence as conditions stabilised.
The report also pointed to the continued role of sovereign wealth funds and government-related investors, including ADIA, PIF and Mubadala, in backing strategic investments tied to long-term economic diversification goals.
