Health US biotech seeks Saudi approval for cancer treatment US-listed biotech company CEL-SCI Corp plans to file for regulatory approval in Saudi Arabia for its experimental cancer treatment Multikine, part of a push to tap growing demand for advanced treatments and expand in the Middle East and North Africa (Mena). The Virginia-headquartered company, which develops immunotherapies for cancer and infectious diseases, is also in […] April 25, 2025
EXCLUSIVE Real Estate Dubai Investments plans IPO before year end, says CEO Dubai Investments is preparing to sell shares in four subsidiaries to the public and may list one of them before the year end, its CEO Khalid bin Kalban has told AGBI. The government-backed company manages AED22.1 billion ($6 billion) of assets in the UAE and beyond, in sectors including real estate, construction and building materials […] April 22, 2025
Health Abu Dhabi launches life sciences business cluster Abu Dhabi has launched a new cluster targered at the life sciences sector, bringing together global companies focused on the preventative care, drug efficacy and human longevity industries. Abu Dhabi’s clusters are groupings of related businesses and insititutions that work together to improve collaboration and share infrastructure. The health, endurance, longevity and medicine (Helm) cluster, […] April 16, 2025
Analysis Manufacturing Jordan’s surging pharma industry may hit US tariff speedbump Growing Gulf spending on health is boosting Jordan’s pharmaceutical industry, but new US tariffs pose a risk to its future, according to analysts. Pharmaceutical exports from Jordan grew by 15 percent last year to $862 million. Another 11 percent growth was projected for this year and further expansion to $1.4 billion in 2029, according to […] April 10, 2025
Markets Hospital operator SMC given approval for Saudi IPO Specialized Medical Company (SMC), which operates two hospitals in Riyadh, has received approval from Saudi Arabia’s Capital Markets Authority to launch an initial public offering (IPO). The announcement allows SMC to issue 75,000 shares, representing 30 percent of its share capital. No further details about the listing were released. SMC’s CEO, Bassam Chahine, told AGBI […] March 27, 2025
Artificial Intelligence Abu Dhabi tenders AI project to analyse genetic data The Abu Dhabi government has invited companies to bid for the development of an artificial intelligence system that would help doctors and researchers better interpret genetic data. The project calls for a large language model (LLM), the same type of AI technology that powers tools such as ChatGPT, to be trained on the Abu Dhabi […] March 24, 2025
Health PureHealth proposes first dividend after Abu Dhabi listing Healthcare group PureHealth is planning its first dividend distribution after listing on the Abu Dhabi Securities Exchange (ADX) in December 2023, the company said in a statement. The board of directors has recommended a total dividend of AED343 million ($93.4 million), or AED 3.09 fils per share, for 2024, representing 20 percent of the group’s […] March 18, 2025
Editor's Insight Health Gulf fertility: falling short of replacement rates Your starter for 10. The demographics of Tehran most closely resemble those of which city? a) Damascus b) Riyadh or c) Zurich. The answer of course, as any fule kno, is c). True, Zurich lacks a prison with the reputation and commodiousness of Evin, but in terms of population growth – or lack of it […] March 6, 2025
Health Gulf healthcare battling staff shortages as demand rises Recruitment is the single biggest challenge facing the Gulf’s healthcare sector, according to industry experts. By 2029, the region will need around 12,300 additional hospital beds to serve a population that is not only growing in number but also aging and living longer, according to private equity group Alpen Capital. That is equivalent to growth […] February 27, 2025
Health Burjeel wins Abu Dhabi healthcare contract The UAE hospital operator Burjeel Holdings has won a contract from Abu Dhabi worth AED225 million ($61 million) to manage and develop healthcare facilities in the emirate and in Africa. Burjeel will operate five clinics in the cities of Abu Dhabi and Al Ain, and develop a new one in Al Wathba, about 20km south […] February 26, 2025
Health BR Shetty ordered to pay $106m to Indian bank BR Shetty, the founder of UAE company NMC Health, has been ordered by a Dubai court to pay $106 million to India’s Icici Bank over personal guarantees tied to the embattled hospital group. This marks a second court ruling made public so far this month. Earlier this month, Shetty was ordered to pay $33 million […] February 20, 2025
Health Waha Capital to expand UAE health business Abu Dhabi’s Waha Capital, a listed company with $3.2 billion of assets under management, plans to expand its healthcare business in the UAE, and could make acquisitions to do so. The company aims to tap demand from the emirates’ expanding population and visitors from India, its chief financial officer said. Waha is part-owned by Abu […] February 19, 2025
Health NMC confirms no buyers so far have matched valuation The UAE’s troubled hospital operator NMC Healthcare confirmed that it has no buyers yet for the company, with differences around valuation cited as one of the reasons. Earlier this week, two people familiar with discussions around a possible sale said that Abu Dhabi-based PureHealth Holding, the UAE’s biggest healthcare group by number of facilities, had […] February 13, 2025
Health NMC founder BR Shetty ordered to pay $33m to Indian bank BR Shetty, the founder of the UAE healthcare company NMC Health, which collapsed in 2020 with billions of dollars in hidden debt, has been ordered by a Dubai court to pay more than $33 million to an Indian bank. In a ruling made public only last month, the Dubai International Financial Centre Courts in November […] February 10, 2025
Analysis Health Tech specialists tap into Gulf’s market of the sleep deprived People in the Gulf are among the worst sleepers in the world, research has found – and that makes the region a rousing proposition for sleep-aid businesses such as the US pair Whoop and Eight Sleep. A survey of 2,727 people across the GCC, published last month, found that only half manage to sleep for […] February 9, 2025
Analysis Health Saudi privatisation push fortifies healthcare companies The revenues of listed Saudi healthcare companies should rise more quickly than the broader stock market thanks to government efforts to increase the private sector’s involvement, analysts have said. Nine-month profits have risen for 10 of the 11 companies analysed by AGBI, with eight posting increases of at least 10 percent. Almoosa Health was the […] January 29, 2025
Health US fund plans $200m factory in Saudi Arabia US-based fund Akkad Holdings is to invest $200 million to build an intravenous fluid factory in Saudi Arabia. The facility will be based in King Abdullah Economic City (KAEC) in Mecca province. “We’re going to break ground hopefully in the next six months,” Dr Steven Shaya, managing director of the fund, told AGBI at the […] January 28, 2025
Health Twaereat Medical to trade on Saudi Arabia’s Nomu Twaereat Medical Care Company will begin trading on the Nomu-Parallel Market from Wednesday, the Saudi Exchange has announced. Twaeraat, which operates more than 100 clinics around Saudi Arabia, will seek an external liquidity provider following its direct listing on the bourse. The indicative price per share is SAR12 ($3.20), according to the registration document. Twaeraat […] January 28, 2025
Health Pure Health buys stake in Greece’s Hellenic Healthcare Abu Dhabi-listed Pure Health has agreed to purchase a 60 percent stake in Hellenic Healthcare, an Athens-based private healthcare services provider. The transaction values Hellenic Healthcare at €2.2 billion ($2.31 billion). The sellers – CVC Capital Partners VI and the founder of Hellenic Healthcare – will retain 35 percent and 5 percent stakes in the […] January 28, 2025
Health SMC Healthcare expects swift profitability from new hospitals SMC Healthcare is building three new hospitals in Riyadh that should break even within three to four years, the Saudi company’s chief executive, Bassam Chahine, has told AGBI. The three hospitals will more than double SMC’s bed count to about 1,200 as it seeks to address healthcare supply shortfalls in the kingdom. Saudi Arabia requires […] January 23, 2025
Health Health insurance shake-up for care in Northern Emirates Mandatory health insurance in the poorer Northern Emirates of the UAE is likely to lead to an expansion of healthcare facilities and increased M&A activity, experts have said. In March last year the UAE announced a plan to introduce mandatory health insurance for all workers in the Northern Emirates – Sharjah, Ajman, Umm Al Quwain, […] January 16, 2025
Analysis Health Saudi Arabia’s biotech push fuels specialised consulting demand Saudi Arabia’s push to become a regional biotechnology hub is fuelling demand for specialised consulting services, as it navigates the challenges of building a life sciences sector from scratch. The kingdom is keen to develop a biotech sector to tackle the high local prevalence of diseases such as diabetes and to exploit commercial opportunities to […] January 16, 2025
