The war with Iran forced the wealth funds of the Persian Gulf to borrow

The war with Iran forced the wealth funds of the Persian Gulf to borrow

Middle List:

The four Persian Gulf border states have changed the mission and structure of their main sovereign wealth funds since the beginning of the year. Officials in these countries tout these reforms as a sign of institutional maturity and long-term planning, but the report believes that wartime financial pressures also played a role in these decisions.

In the first half of 2026, Saudi Arabia faced a budget deficit of 160 billion riyals, about 42.6 billion dollars; According to the report, this number is the country's worst financial performance since 2016.

In July, the state oil company of Kuwait rejected its crude oil pipeline network in the form of a $16 billion contract for a partnership with the presence of the American investment companies Blackstone and KKR and the Canadian company Brookfield.

In September, Qatar organized about a third of its $580 billion sovereign wealth fund into a new entity called Doha Investments.