Microsoft Vows to Spend $8 Billion in UAE Through 2029 on Cloud, Chips - Bloomberg
Microsoft Corp. is planning to spend more than $7.9 billion on data centers, cloud computing and employees in the United Arab Emirates over the next four years, capitalizing on a US government clearance to ship artificial intelligence chips to the Gulf nation.
Microsoft president Brad Smith announced the commitment on Monday in Abu Dhabi. The pledge includes plans to nearly triple the amount of Nvidia Corp. advanced chips Microsoft will operate in the nation, bringing in critical equipment that has been restricted by the US government.
“This is not money we’re raising here. It’s money we’re investing and spending here,” Smith told Bloomberg Television at the sidelines of the Adipec oil conference in Abu Dhabi. “We are seeing demand here explode.”
The Middle East nation has become a frequent partner for Silicon Valley companies thanks to its ample energy, oil wealth and deepening ties with Donald Trump’s White House. Microsoft said it was the first US company to receive Trump Administration approvals to deploy AI chips in the UAE. The company said it will invest a total of $15.2 billion in the country from 2023 to 2029.
The software giant is spending lavishly on its cloud business and AI services, trying to fill a shortage of computing capacity. It’s one of several tech giants racing to build out AI infrastructure despite some concerns of a bubble in the industry. Earlier on Monday, Microsoft announced a $9.7 billion deal with Australian data center operator IREN Ltd. for a facility in Texas.
In the UAE, Microsoft plans to spend more than $5.5 billion in capital expenditures on cloud and AI infrastructure from the start of 2026 through 2029, according to Smith. The company said it will invest another $2.4 billion or so on operating expenses and local hiring.
Microsoft has been an ally in the UAE’s ambitions to diversify its economy from oil into a range of digital tech. In early 2024, Microsoft invested $1.5 billion in G42, an Abu Dhabi AI firm that develops cybersecurity tools, cloud services and spacecraft. Smith joined G42’s board.
Earlier this year, OpenAI, which counts Microsoft as its biggest backer, chose the UAE as the first country outside of the US to host a Stargate data center project.
But the Gulf state’s access to leading semiconductors has been an open question. Bloomberg reported in October that the US approved the export of chips to American companies operating in the UAE, following a bilateral deal on the tech that drew national security concerns. The US has yet to approve the sale of Nvidia chips to Emirati companies, including G42, Bloomberg reported earlier.
Some US officials have criticized American firms for putting large data center and critical equipment in the Middle East, noting the potential for the tech to move to China, which maintains ties to the region.
Microsoft said it received US government licenses to ship AI chips to the UAE in September after meeting security criteria. “They’re not just acts of faith,” Smith said. “We had to satisfy very strict conditions about the cybersecurity, the physical security, the other security protection of these chips to ensure that they stay under our control.”
The company said it previously deployed 21,500 chips equivalent to Nvidia’s A100 graphics processing units in the UAE under approvals from the Joe Biden Administration. The company plans to ship 60,400 more chips equipvent to the A100, including some of Nvidia’s new GB300 product. Those will come “in months, not years,” according to Smith.
Microsoft has about 1,000 full-time engineers in the UAE and has opened an AI lab in the country. Aside from the $1.5 billion deal with G42, Microsoft said it invested about $5.8 billion in the UAE since the start of 2023. That means its annual spending pledge through 2029 is roughly on par with the past few years.
Globally, the company reported $34.9 billion in capital expenditures in the last quarter alone.
Monday, 3 November 2025
#Dubai's Emirates NBD Seeks to Deepen India Push With Dealmaker Hires - Bloomberg
Dubai's Emirates NBD Seeks to Deepen India Push With Dealmaker Hires - Bloomberg
Emirates NBD Bank PJSC is seeking to build an investment banking franchise in India, according to people familiar with the matter, underscoring its ambitions in the world’s fastest-growing major economy weeks after agreeing to invest $3 billion in a mid-sized lender.
The investment banking arm of Dubai’s flagship financial group plans to hire about 15 bankers in India by the middle of next year, the people said, asking not to be identified because the information is private.
Emirates NBD Capital, also known as EmCap, has applied for an investment banking license, one person said. It may look to eventually build out its capabilities across advisory, equity underwriting and debt capital markets.
The bank is mainly looking to recruit from other international institutions already operating in India, the people said. A spokesperson for Emirates NBD declined to comment.
India has seen a rebound in dealmaking and initial public offerings despite tariff tensions with the US, sparking a battle for talent. Senior dealmakers in India now earn more than peers in Singapore and Hong Kong.
Earlier this month, Emirates NBD, Dubai’s house bank, announced plans to buy a majority stake in RBL Bank Ltd. for about $3 billion, one of the largest foreign investments in India’s financial sector.
That transaction is part of roughly $15 billion worth of deals involving financial firms in India this year, according to data compiled by Bloomberg. In early October, International Holding Co., also based in the United Arab Emirates, bought a $1 billion stake in an Indian shadow lender.
EmCap has taken office space in Altimus tower in Worli, a prominent commercial hub in Mumbai, the people said.
Building out its investment banking franchise in India will help EmCap tap into growing trade flows between the two countries. Indians make up the largest share of the UAE’s expatriate population and play a major role in its financial sector.
Emirates NBD Bank PJSC is seeking to build an investment banking franchise in India, according to people familiar with the matter, underscoring its ambitions in the world’s fastest-growing major economy weeks after agreeing to invest $3 billion in a mid-sized lender.
The investment banking arm of Dubai’s flagship financial group plans to hire about 15 bankers in India by the middle of next year, the people said, asking not to be identified because the information is private.
Emirates NBD Capital, also known as EmCap, has applied for an investment banking license, one person said. It may look to eventually build out its capabilities across advisory, equity underwriting and debt capital markets.
The bank is mainly looking to recruit from other international institutions already operating in India, the people said. A spokesperson for Emirates NBD declined to comment.
India has seen a rebound in dealmaking and initial public offerings despite tariff tensions with the US, sparking a battle for talent. Senior dealmakers in India now earn more than peers in Singapore and Hong Kong.
Earlier this month, Emirates NBD, Dubai’s house bank, announced plans to buy a majority stake in RBL Bank Ltd. for about $3 billion, one of the largest foreign investments in India’s financial sector.
That transaction is part of roughly $15 billion worth of deals involving financial firms in India this year, according to data compiled by Bloomberg. In early October, International Holding Co., also based in the United Arab Emirates, bought a $1 billion stake in an Indian shadow lender.
EmCap has taken office space in Altimus tower in Worli, a prominent commercial hub in Mumbai, the people said.
Building out its investment banking franchise in India will help EmCap tap into growing trade flows between the two countries. Indians make up the largest share of the UAE’s expatriate population and play a major role in its financial sector.
Microsoft to invest over $15 billion in #UAE, secures US export licenses for Nvidia chips | Reuters
Microsoft to invest over $15 billion in UAE, secures US export licenses for Nvidia chips | Reuters
Microsoft (MSFT.O), opens new tab will invest over $15 billion in the United Arab Emirates in the seven years to the end of 2029 and has the Trump administration's approval to export Nvidia chips for its data centres there, a senior executive told Reuters on Monday.
The UAE has been spending billions of dollars to become a global artificial intelligence hub, leveraging its close relations with Washington to secure access to U.S. technology, including some of the world's most advanced chips.
"The biggest share of (the investment), by far, both looking back and looking forward, is the expansion of AI data centres across the UAE," Microsoft Vice Chair and President Brad Smith said in an interview.
"From our perspective, it's an investment that is critical to meet the demand here for the use of AI," he said on the sidelines of the ADIPEC energy conference in Abu Dhabi.
NEW ROUND OF CHIP EXPORT APPROVALS FROM TRUMP WHITE HOUSE
Microsoft invested $1.5 billion last year to take a minority stake in Abu Dhabi AI company G42, giving the U.S. tech giant a board seat, which is filled by Smith.
G42's past ties to China, however, have attracted scrutiny in Washington, due to concerns over Beijing's access to advanced semiconductors, including via third parties like the UAE.
G42 said last year it was working with U.S. partners and the Emirati government to comply with AI development and deployment standards. Smith said G42 had made "enormous progress" in implementing the systems required to comply with U.S. law.
Asked whether the Abu Dhabi firm would obtain direct access to the most advanced U.S. chips, he said he thought that would be "part of G42's future."
Smith said in a separate blog post on Microsoft's website on Monday that licences approved last year by the Biden administration allowed Microsoft to accumulate the equivalent of 21,500 Nvidia A100 GPUs in the UAE, based on a combination of A100, H100, and H200 chips.
The Trump White House in September cleared for export an amount equivalent to a further 60,400 A100 chips, involving Nvidia's more advanced GB300 GPUs, he said, after the administration revised technology safeguards.
INVESTING BILLIONS IN AI EXPANSION, CLOUD INFRASTRUCTURE
The chips covered by the latest approvals have not yet been shipped, but that will happen "in a matter of months," Smith told Reuters, adding they will be used in its own data centres in the UAE.
Microsoft will have invested $7.3 billion in the UAE between 2023 and the end of this year. A further $7.9 billion is earmarked to be spent between next year and the end of 2029, including for the ongoing and planned expansion of AI and cloud infrastructure, he said in his blog post.
None of the $15.2 billion investment disclosed on Monday will involve Stargate UAE, the first phase of one of the world's largest planned data centre hubs. That project, located in Abu Dhabi, was announced during a Gulf visit by U.S. President Donald Trump in May.
Microsoft (MSFT.O), opens new tab will invest over $15 billion in the United Arab Emirates in the seven years to the end of 2029 and has the Trump administration's approval to export Nvidia chips for its data centres there, a senior executive told Reuters on Monday.
The UAE has been spending billions of dollars to become a global artificial intelligence hub, leveraging its close relations with Washington to secure access to U.S. technology, including some of the world's most advanced chips.
"The biggest share of (the investment), by far, both looking back and looking forward, is the expansion of AI data centres across the UAE," Microsoft Vice Chair and President Brad Smith said in an interview.
"From our perspective, it's an investment that is critical to meet the demand here for the use of AI," he said on the sidelines of the ADIPEC energy conference in Abu Dhabi.
NEW ROUND OF CHIP EXPORT APPROVALS FROM TRUMP WHITE HOUSE
Microsoft invested $1.5 billion last year to take a minority stake in Abu Dhabi AI company G42, giving the U.S. tech giant a board seat, which is filled by Smith.
G42's past ties to China, however, have attracted scrutiny in Washington, due to concerns over Beijing's access to advanced semiconductors, including via third parties like the UAE.
G42 said last year it was working with U.S. partners and the Emirati government to comply with AI development and deployment standards. Smith said G42 had made "enormous progress" in implementing the systems required to comply with U.S. law.
Asked whether the Abu Dhabi firm would obtain direct access to the most advanced U.S. chips, he said he thought that would be "part of G42's future."
Smith said in a separate blog post on Microsoft's website on Monday that licences approved last year by the Biden administration allowed Microsoft to accumulate the equivalent of 21,500 Nvidia A100 GPUs in the UAE, based on a combination of A100, H100, and H200 chips.
The Trump White House in September cleared for export an amount equivalent to a further 60,400 A100 chips, involving Nvidia's more advanced GB300 GPUs, he said, after the administration revised technology safeguards.
INVESTING BILLIONS IN AI EXPANSION, CLOUD INFRASTRUCTURE
The chips covered by the latest approvals have not yet been shipped, but that will happen "in a matter of months," Smith told Reuters, adding they will be used in its own data centres in the UAE.
Microsoft will have invested $7.3 billion in the UAE between 2023 and the end of this year. A further $7.9 billion is earmarked to be spent between next year and the end of 2029, including for the ongoing and planned expansion of AI and cloud infrastructure, he said in his blog post.
None of the $15.2 billion investment disclosed on Monday will involve Stargate UAE, the first phase of one of the world's largest planned data centre hubs. That project, located in Abu Dhabi, was announced during a Gulf visit by U.S. President Donald Trump in May.
Gulf bourses mixed on weak earnings, US rate cut uncertainty | Reuters
Gulf bourses mixed on weak earnings, US rate cut uncertainty | Reuters
Stock markets in the Gulf ended mixed on Monday, driven by underwhelming corporate earnings and diminished expectations for further Federal Reserve rate cuts in December.
The U.S. Fed cut interest rates by 25 basis points for the second time this year on October 29, but Chair Jerome Powell's hawkish comments afterward cast doubt on the likelihood of further rate cuts in 2025.
Traders now assign a 71% probability to a rate cut in December, down from more than 90% earlier, according to CME's FedWatch Tool.
U.S. monetary policy shifts have a significant impact on Gulf markets, where most currencies are pegged to the dollar.
Saudi Arabia's benchmark index (.TASI), opens new tab fell 0.5%, hit by a 4.8% slide in renewable energy utility firm ACWA Power Company (2082.SE), opens new tab, as the company failed to meet quarterly profit forecasts.
Among other decliners, petrochemical maker Saudi Basic Industries Corp (SABIC) (2010.SE), opens new tab retreated 1.8%, on course to extend losses, a day after reporting a steep fall in third-quarter profit.
The market could remain under pressure as investors take into account the potential for slower market reforms on foreign ownership, said Joseph Dahrieh, managing principal at Tickmill.
"Additionally, low oil prices could remain a source of risk for the market, although it could stabilize after OPEC's decision to halt production increases in the first-quarter next year."
However, Arabian Drilling (2381.SE), opens new tab advanced 2.2%, despite turning to losses in third-quarter.
Dubai's main share index (.DFMGI), opens new tab dropped 0.7%, with blue-chip developer Emaar Properties (EMAR.DU), opens new tab losing 1.8%.
In Abu Dhabi, the index (.FTFADGI), opens new tab closed 0.8% lower, pressured by a 3.3% drop in Aldar Properties (ALDAR.AD), opens new tab.
In the previous session, Aldar tumbled 3.8% after a media report indicated that Alpha Dhabi (ALPHADHABI.AD), opens new tab intends to divest a portion of its stake in the developer.
The Qatari index (.QSI), opens new tab reversed early losses to conclude 0.9% higher, with Qatar Islamic Bank (QISB.QA), opens new tab climbing 2.4%.
Outside the Gulf, Egypt's blue-chip index (.EGX30), opens new tab advanced 1.4%, hitting its highest, led by a 1.9% rise in Commercial International Bank (COMI.CA), opens new tab, while Talaat Moustafa Group Holding (TMGH.CA), opens new tab jumped 4.8%, after its unit launched the development of a new integrated tourism project with an anticipated investment of $788 million.
Stock markets in the Gulf ended mixed on Monday, driven by underwhelming corporate earnings and diminished expectations for further Federal Reserve rate cuts in December.
The U.S. Fed cut interest rates by 25 basis points for the second time this year on October 29, but Chair Jerome Powell's hawkish comments afterward cast doubt on the likelihood of further rate cuts in 2025.
Traders now assign a 71% probability to a rate cut in December, down from more than 90% earlier, according to CME's FedWatch Tool.
U.S. monetary policy shifts have a significant impact on Gulf markets, where most currencies are pegged to the dollar.
Saudi Arabia's benchmark index (.TASI), opens new tab fell 0.5%, hit by a 4.8% slide in renewable energy utility firm ACWA Power Company (2082.SE), opens new tab, as the company failed to meet quarterly profit forecasts.
Among other decliners, petrochemical maker Saudi Basic Industries Corp (SABIC) (2010.SE), opens new tab retreated 1.8%, on course to extend losses, a day after reporting a steep fall in third-quarter profit.
The market could remain under pressure as investors take into account the potential for slower market reforms on foreign ownership, said Joseph Dahrieh, managing principal at Tickmill.
"Additionally, low oil prices could remain a source of risk for the market, although it could stabilize after OPEC's decision to halt production increases in the first-quarter next year."
However, Arabian Drilling (2381.SE), opens new tab advanced 2.2%, despite turning to losses in third-quarter.
Dubai's main share index (.DFMGI), opens new tab dropped 0.7%, with blue-chip developer Emaar Properties (EMAR.DU), opens new tab losing 1.8%.
In Abu Dhabi, the index (.FTFADGI), opens new tab closed 0.8% lower, pressured by a 3.3% drop in Aldar Properties (ALDAR.AD), opens new tab.
In the previous session, Aldar tumbled 3.8% after a media report indicated that Alpha Dhabi (ALPHADHABI.AD), opens new tab intends to divest a portion of its stake in the developer.
The Qatari index (.QSI), opens new tab reversed early losses to conclude 0.9% higher, with Qatar Islamic Bank (QISB.QA), opens new tab climbing 2.4%.
Outside the Gulf, Egypt's blue-chip index (.EGX30), opens new tab advanced 1.4%, hitting its highest, led by a 1.9% rise in Commercial International Bank (COMI.CA), opens new tab, while Talaat Moustafa Group Holding (TMGH.CA), opens new tab jumped 4.8%, after its unit launched the development of a new integrated tourism project with an anticipated investment of $788 million.
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