Mohammed Saif Al-Sowaidi

When the Qatar Investment Authority (QIA), a sovereign wealth fund of the State of Qatar, was established in 2005, its purpose was twofold: Protect and grow Qatar’s massive oil and natural gas surplus, and diversify the country’s economy by investing in international markets across asset classes.

One of those asset classes is real estate, of which the wealth fund manages a portfolio exceeding tens of billions of dollars. QIA focuses on prime commercial assets, luxury hotels and major mixed-use developments across cities such as New York City, London, Paris and Milan.

Led by Mohammed Al-Sowaidi, the Doha-based sovereign wealth fund has become a key player in Manhattan’s commercial real estate scene, specifically, where it invested in a 9.9 percent stake in major real estate investment trust Empire State Realty Trust for $622 million in 2016, thus giving it direct access into the U.S. market.

QIA is also a frequent partner with Brookfield, another major player in New York City. In May, the joint venture partners secured a $1.9 billion commercial mortgage-backed securities refinancing loan at their 58-story Midtown office tower, 2 Manhattan West.

Also with Brookfield, QIA in December formed a $20 billion joint venture focused on artificial intelligence infrastructure in Qatar and other international markets, with the goal to invest in AI facility developments and support the country’s expanding digital and AI ecosystem.

Speaking of AI, QIA and Blue Owl Capital launched a $3 billion digital infrastructure partnership in September focused on data centers and AI power. “[We’re] committed to scaling digital infrastructure that will meet the growing demand for data storage and computation requirements globally, with a particular focus on increasing data connectivity,” Al-Sowaidi said in a statement at the time.

All told, across its investments in equities, fixed income, real estate and alternatives, QIA currently manages approximately $557 billion in global assets, according to independent intelligence platform Universal Asset Owners. QIA does not publicly publish its own holdings.