The TCW Group announced the opening of a new office in Dubai, UAE, marking its first physical presence in the Middle East. The office, situated in the Dubai International Financial Centre (DIFC), will primarily focus on serving the investment needs of sovereign and institutional clients in the region.
Katie Koch, TCW’s president and CEO, emphasized the importance of establishing a local presence to better serve their growing client base in the area. “As TCW’s Middle East client relationships continue to grow and deepen, it is important that we have a local presence to serve and partner with our clients,” Koch stated. She added that the firm aims to “deliver best-in-class investment solutions that meet their objectives.”
To spearhead this new venture, Wael Younan, co-head of TCW’s Sovereign Wealth Group, will relocate from New York to Dubai. Younan will work alongside Peter Moore, who remains in Los Angeles, to continue developing TCW’s sovereign wealth relationships both in the Middle East and globally.
The growing list of alternative investment firms that have flocked to the UAE over the past year includes private credit specialist Monroe Capital, real assets firm Harrison Street and hedge funds Infini Capital, Kirkoswald Capital Partners and TCI Fund Management.
TCW, which manages about $200 billion in client assets, offers a wide range of investment products across fixed income, alternative investments, equities, and emerging markets. The firm’s client portfolio includes major corporate and public pension plans, financial institutions, endowments, foundations, financial advisors, and high net worth individuals.
TCW along with PNC Financial Services Group is planning to launch this fall a platform providing private credit solutions to middle-market companies with $2.5 billion in equity capital to invest in its first year.
Earlier this year TCW closed a $400 million collateralized loan obligation fund, TCW CLO 2024-1, which is mostly secured by broadly syndicated first-lien loans. Additionally, the firm established an Asset-Backed Finance business supported by over $1 billion in capital commitments from TCW, partners and affiliates.