As part of its future expansion strategy, a division of Abu Dhabi’s sovereign wealth fund is exploring acquisitions and an initial public offering.
Mubadala Business Management Services, entirely owned by Mubadala Investment Company, relaunched as Solutions+ on Friday and is investigating acquisitions in the UAE and abroad to bolster its portfolio, according to an interview with The National conducted by CEO Nasir Al Nabhani.
He stated that the IPO preparations are “in there as a strategy.”
We do not know when it will occur, but it is part of the five-year growth strategy we adopted in 2023. At the appropriate moment, we would like to conduct an IPO, Mr. Al Nabhani stated.
“We will assess potential on the [local] market and internationally. If there are purchases that meet our business strategy, then why not?”
The firm is considering an IPO amid a rush of listings in the UAE and the Gulf region as a whole.
In 2022, Middle East IPOs raised over $23 billion, compared to $7.52 billion from 20 offerings in 2021.
In addition to mergers, corporations are use acquisitions to expand their consumer base and seek chances in markets with development potential.
“We may purchase stakes… Mr. Al Nabhani added, “We are looking at expansion potential worldwide and domestically.”
Solutions+ does not reveal its financials, although the firm increased by around 20% in 2022, “exceeding its goals,” according to him.
Mr. Al Nabhani stated that Solutions+ hopes to become a billion-dollar firm “within a few years” and that the 2023 objective is to surpass last year’s growth figures “by a little bit more.”
The company’s goal involves expanding into new markets and attracting more customers. Now, it has more than 40 clients in major industries.
The majority of its clients are subsidiaries of its parent company, Mubadala, accounting for three quarters of its activity.
Solutions+ performs more than 14,000 transactions each month for Mubadala enterprises alone, which is equivalent to more than Dh530 billion ($144.31 billion) in transactions every year, according to Mr. Al Nabhani.
In order to complement the approach, Solutions+ is developing a fully digital platform that will connect its services and allow clients to “plug and play,” as he said.
The anticipated release date for the system is the end of 2023. According to Mr. Al Nabhani, it is likely to surpass the 75% decrease in processing time its clients presently enjoy with its digital payment system.
“We intend to expand our service offerings in Abu Dhabi and the UAE. And we feel there is substantial growth ahead,” he added.
Solutions+ also wants to expand its business process outsourcing (BPO) services, one of its primary focuses, as it expects demand to continue to rise, particularly as businesses increasingly use digital technologies in an effort to simplify corporate processes.
Business process outsourcing (BPO) is the delegation of business processes, especially those that are IT-intensive, to an external service provider that is responsible for managing them.
Mr. Al Nabhani stated that the business sees a Dh25 billion BPO opportunity in the UAE alone.
The advantages of BPO, which includes services like as payroll, human resources, and marketing, include the simplification of processes and the reduction of expenses.