Dubai: Al Masah Capital, a Middle East and North Africa (Mena) focused strategic investment company plans to help investments in industries where technology has a disruptive role to play.
The company follows strategy of raising funds through a close group of strategic investors and has helped companies make significant investments in the region’s health care, education, logistics and lifestyle sectors.
Since the launch, the Group has raised $1.75 billion which has been invested mostly in social infrastructure space, it has plans to pursue investment opportunities in technology solutions that are disruptive in nature.
- Shailesh Dash | Founder and Board Member of Al Masah Capital
“While we continue to nurture our existing portfolios on health care, education and logistics, we intend to go into the disruptive space,” said Shailesh Dash, Founder and Board Member of Al Masah Capital.
With the digitisation initiatives catching up fast in the UAE and the GCC countries with the governments and private sectors investing heavily in digital technologies, the company sees great deal of opportunities to invest in these initiatives. To start with, these investments will be focused on technologies that are linked to sectors where it’s partner companies already have presence.
Al Masah, one of the pioneers in private health care consolidation in the UAE has helped build a strong health care portfolio under the brand Avivo, it’s partner company. The company operates a diverse portfolio of health care assets such as two hospitals, 29 speciality/medical centers, six pharmacies, six medical distribution centers and two diagnostic and two training centers. The company is present in 5 countries: UAE, Qatar, Kuwait, Lebanon and Saudi Arabia.
Similarly, in education sector it’s partner company Al Najah Education Company has more than 45 kindergartens, childcare centers, training centers and schools.
In the logistics business it’s partner company Gulf Pinnacle Company has two warehouses and more than 200 transportation vehicles. The company has recently invested in courier business and has also helped in the growing foot print of the restaurant business under Diamond Lifestyle Limited (DLL) that owns 19 outlets in the UAE under the brand name Johnny Rockets; an American fast-food burger chain. DLL is present in the UAE via Johnny Rockets and has the franchise rights to roll-out Johnny Rockets outlets in Oman.
Business eco-systems
A new area of business, where Al Masah is venturing is real estate services that focuses on niche segment of facilities management. As part of this initiative, company will partner with Al Maha Integrated Services Company which is looking to invest in smart buildings security systems that generate useful data for businesses. With the emergence of more urban communities, the company recognises the need for connected smart homes.
The company is also embarking on partnering with a regional firm to help support its investments in creating business eco-systems that supports co-working spaces that supports every need of businesses. This is not a real estate investment, rather it is all about creating business hubs. Al Masah Capital is planning to help the company that is into the business of creating smart business eco-systems in raising funds and advise them for its plans to expand its presence across more than 10 cities such as Dubai, Singapore, Hong Kong, Miami, Manchester and a few others.
“We hope to help the company build 50 such facilities around the world in the next four years,” said Dash.
Al Masah Capital also recently helped a prominent Abu Dhabi Company to raise funds for its Digital Banking platform which will be the first of its kind commercial bank in the country once all the regulatory approvals are obtained.
