Qatar Asset Management Signs $250 Million Deal with Barclays 

(MENAFN - Qatar News Agency) Qatar Asset Management Company (QAMC), a collaboration between Qatar Financial Centre Authority (QFC Authority) and Qatar Investment Authority (QIA), announced on Monday the formation of a strategic partnership with global private equity firm Barclays Natural Resource Investments (BNRI), a division of Barclays Bank PLC.

Under the partnership terms agreed, QAMC will co-invest 250 million in BNRI s current and future portfolio companies, of which a substantial proportion will be allocated to BNRI s existing 2.1 billion portfolio of companies.

BNRI will continue to source, execute, manage and exit private equity transactions in the natural resources sectors on a global basis and co-investors will be invited to participate immediately upon completion of each transaction.

BNRI regional office will be located within QFC. BNRI employees, including senior members of the BNRI team such as Mark Brown, Managing Director and Head of BNRI, will work on the ground in Doha. BNRI will also add local as well as international talent as its growth strategy unfolds.

Managing Director of the QFC Authority ,Abdulrahman Ahmad Al-Shaibi, said that the partnership is an important milestone in Qatar s strategy of developing an asset management hub and promoting the expansion of Qatar s financial services industry.

"Barclays is already well-established in Doha as a QFC licensed entity, and we are delighted now to welcome the BNRI team to QFC. Given BNRI s outstanding track record, skills and understanding of the natural resources sector, we are confident of achieving quality long-term returns from this strategic partnership," Al-Shaibi said.

Barclays CEO for Middle East and North Africa John Vitalo added: "This strategic partnership demonstrates our lasting commitment to the MENA Region and to the State of Qatar. Doha is an attractive business environment."

"We are very excited about the collaboration announced today which will provide us not only with the opportunity to further extend Barclays global capabilities, but also strengthen our relationship with Qatar." Vitalo added.
Shashank Srivastava, Acting CEO of QFC Authority, pointed to the significance of asset management to QFC Authority s strategy for helping the growth of Qatar s financial sector.

"With this ground breaking announcement, BNRI joins a growing list of international firms which recognize the attractions of operating in Doha and of a QFC license. Our long-term strategic partnership with BNRI is further evidence that Qatar is achieving global recognition as a dynamic economy, a business-friendly regional and international financial center and a hub for asset management," Srivastava added.

Managing Director and Head of BNRI Mark Brown added: "We are pleased to be working in close partnership with the QAMC and look forward to developing a long-term relationship to add to our existing co-investors.

The demand for natural resources continues to grow as the global economy expands but their supply is limited.

This means our focus investment area of global natural resources is set to continue to generate attractive investment opportunities. Our partnership with QAMC and the State of Qatar allows BNRI to capture that opportunity for the benefit of all our co-investors."

QFC is a financial and business center established by the Government of Qatar and located in Doha. It has been designed to attract international financial services institutions and major multi-national corporations, in particular those operating in the reinsurance, captive insurance and asset management sectors, and to encourage participation in the growing market for financial services in Qatar and elsewhere in the region.

QFC operates to international standards and provides a first class legal and business infrastructure for those operating within QFC.

QFC Authority is the commercial, administrative and legislative body responsible for leading the expansion of Qatar s financial services sector, providing a uniquely sustainable platform for regional growth in reinsurance, captive insurance and asset management.

BNRI is a global private equity business focused on direct natural resource investment opportunities that provides clients and affiliates of Barclays as well as strategic investors the opportunity to gain exposure to the natural resources sector by co-investing alongside Barclays and the BNRI investment team.

BNRI invests in global natural resources by finding and partnering with uniquely well-placed operational management teams with specific expertise and significant experience and track-records within the global natural resources sector, primarily in upstream oil & gas, upstream mining and power, including renewables.