The fund is reviewing its executive ranks, recruiting senior professionals and reorganising parts of its portfolio, according to people familiar with the matter cited by Bloomberg.

L’imad has been working with the Boston Consulting Group on the recruitment process and has asked some executives transferred from Abu Dhabi Developmental Holding Group, better known as ADQ, to reapply for their positions.

The changes come only months after Abu Dhabi consolidated ADQ’s assets under L’imad, creating a sovereign investment platform spanning infrastructure, energy, healthcare, aviation, ports, financial services, technology and industrial assets.

The Emirate aims to establish a diversified sovereign investment powerhouse through the restructuring.

At the centre of the new structure is Sheikh Khaled bin Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan, Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi, who was appointed chairman of L’imad in January.

Jassem Al Zaabi, chairman of Abu Dhabi’s Department of Finance and vice-chairman of the UAE Central Bank, was appointed managing director and group chief executive.

The changes give L’imad a potentially important position within Abu Dhabi’s already formidable sovereign investment ecosystem, alongside the Abu Dhabi Investment Authority and Mubadala Investment Company.

From ADQ to L’imad
The creation of L’imad represents one of the most significant reorganisations of Abu Dhabi’s state investment architecture in years.

ADQ, established in 2018, had accumulated more than USD 263 billion in assets before its consolidation into L’imad.

Its holdings included strategic companies across energy, infrastructure, healthcare, food, transport and financial services.

Under the new structure, L’imad’s portfolio encompasses 25 investment companies and platforms and more than 250 subsidiaries, including TAQA, Modon Properties, Etihad Airways, PureHealth, Etihad Rail, Wio Bank, Abu Dhabi Ports, McLaren and Louis Dreyfus.

The stated objective is not simply to hold these assets but to manage them more actively.

In July, Sheikh Khaled approved L’imad’s investment and operational framework, covering energy and utilities, urban development, ports and logistics, aviation, industrial businesses and alternative investments.

The fund said the framework would diversify income streams and improve returns over the medium and long term. Al Zaabi described L’imad’s model as an “operationally active shareholder” approach, in which the fund works directly with portfolio companies rather than functioning solely as a passive investor.

That approach could make the fund an increasingly significant participant in large corporate transactions, infrastructure projects and strategic investments.

Dealmaking is already under way
L’imad has moved quickly since its formation.

It acquired a 42.54% stake in Abu Dhabi real estate company Modon Holding from International Holding Company last year.

The fund was also involved in the consortium that pursued Paramount’s proposed acquisition of Warner Bros Discovery alongside Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund and Qatar Investment Authority.

Its investment programme has since expanded to include infrastructure projects.

In May, L’imad joined BlackRock’s Global Infrastructure Partners, Singapore’s Temasek and ADNOC in a partnership targeting USD 30 billion of investment across the Gulf, Central Asia and selected markets in the wider Middle East and North Africa.

The partnership will use a combination of equity and debt to invest in greenfield and brownfield projects, particularly in energy, transportation and logistics.

The initiative illustrates the type of transactions L’imad is positioning itself to pursue: large-scale projects where Abu Dhabi’s capital can be combined with international financial and operating expertise.

L’imad has also taken greater control of existing domestic assets. In June, it acquired 2PointZero’s stake in TAQA, a transaction that is expected to give L’imad ownership of about 98.12% of the power and water utility once approvals are completed.

In August, the fund announced its intention to acquire the remaining shares of AD Ports Group, further consolidating strategic infrastructure assets under its umbrella.

A broader role for sovereign capital
The restructuring is taking place against a broader expansion of Abu Dhabi’s use of sovereign capital.

The emirate oversees several of the world’s largest pools of state investment money. ADIA alone was estimated by Global SWF to have about USD 1.187 trillion in assets in 2025, while Mubadala reported assets of USD 385 billion at the end of that year.

The consolidation of ADQ into L’imad, therefore, does not create a new pool of USD 300 billion from scratch. Rather, it reorganises a substantial existing portfolio under a new institutional structure and leadership.

That distinction is important to understanding L’imad’s role.

Where ADIA has traditionally operated as a globally diversified investment institution and Mubadala has focused heavily on diversification and strategic investments, L’imad’s emerging mandate appears particularly connected to operating companies, domestic economic development and strategic sectors.

The fund’s portfolio framework explicitly covers industries that Abu Dhabi regards as critical to its economic transformation, including energy, logistics, aviation, technology and advanced industry.

Leadership reset
The executive restructuring also aims to establish a distinct institutional identity instead of merely renaming ADQ’s existing organisation.

Bloomberg reported that L’imad is reassessing roles and recruiting senior talent, with some former ADQ executives required to compete for positions they previously held.

The move could help determine how the fund balances two potentially competing priorities: operating a giant portfolio of domestic strategic companies while simultaneously deploying capital internationally.

The appointment of Sheikh Khaled as chairman also places L’imad directly within the emirate’s senior economic leadership structure. Its board includes figures such as Mubadala managing director Khaldoon Al Mubarak, reinforcing links between Abu Dhabi’s major investment institutions.

The fund is consequently emerging at a time when Abu Dhabi is seeking to increase the global reach of its capital while using state-backed investment to accelerate economic diversification at home.

For L’imad, the immediate task is to turn the consolidation of more than $260 billion of inherited ADQ assets into a coherent investment platform.

Its growing involvement in infrastructure partnerships, utilities, ports and international transactions suggests that the new fund is being positioned for an active role in that process.

The next phase will reveal whether L’imad becomes primarily an operating shareholder of Abu Dhabi’s strategic companies, a global dealmaker, or a combination of both.

For now, the restructuring of its leadership and portfolio indicates that Abu Dhabi is building an institution designed to do more than simply manage assets: it is positioning a large pool of sovereign capital as an instrument for both domestic economic development and international investment.

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