Blackstone announced a $250 million investment in Advanced Digital Gaming Technology (ADGT), a new payments and data intelligence technology platform based in the United Arab Emirates, the asset manager said on Thursday.
The firm said ADGT was established via a strategic partnership that includes Blackstone, Abu Dhabi-based investment company Raya Holding, and technology partners NRT Technology and Sightline Payments. Headquartered in Abu Dhabi, ADGT will focus on supporting regulated digital markets globally, Blackstone said, and will initially target deployments across the UAE, the Middle East, Africa and select international corridors.
According to information cited by LSEG, the transaction is the first private equity-backed inbound deal into the Gulf region since the beginning of the Iran war. The conflict began on February 28 when the United States and Israel launched coordinated strikes against Iran, an escalation that has disrupted air travel and shipping and led to a shock in energy markets.
Blackstone described ADGT as the premier payments and compliance technology provider to the UAE commercial gaming market. The firm did not specify when the platform was established.
"We see significant opportunity to deploy capital at scale in the UAE to build companies that can grow both domestically and internationally, despite near-term headwinds," said Blackstone President and Chief Operating Officer Jon Gray.
Blackstone manages $1.3 trillion in assets and has previously invested in UAE companies including classifieds platform Property Finder. Prior to this ADGT deal, the most recent private equity-backed inbound transaction in the Gulf had been VC firm Emergence Capital’s acquisition of Dubai-based automotive AI company AlgoDriven in February.
Market participants and advisers are continuing to try to press ahead with deals in the Gulf despite uncertainty surrounding the war's impact on regional logistics and energy markets, Reuters reported earlier this month.
Separately, promotional material included with the transaction coverage noted an AI-driven stock evaluation product that assesses Blackstone alongside thousands of other companies using over 100 financial metrics. That product, ProPicks AI, highlighted past winners including Super Micro Computer (+185%) and AppLovin (+157%), and posed the question of whether BX is featured in any of its strategies.
The ADGT investment underscores continued interest from major global asset managers in building technology and payments infrastructure in the UAE, even as geopolitical tensions create operational headwinds for the wider region.