DWS Group is stepping up its Middle East expansion with the appointment of Alexandre Daoud as Senior Coverage Specialist for Alternatives in the region, underscoring intensifying competition among global asset managers to tap Gulf capital.
Daoud will be based in Abu Dhabi Global Market, the emirate’s international financial hub. He joins from Panattoni, where he served as head of capital markets for the Middle East, and previously spent a decade at JLL.
The hire follows the German asset manager’s decision to open an office in Abu Dhabi in October 2025, part of a broader strategy to deepen its footprint in the Gulf as sovereign wealth funds and family offices ramp up allocations to private equity, infrastructure and real assets.
DWS, which manages about €1.085 trillion in assets, is among a growing number of global firms setting up in Abu Dhabi to be closer to some of the world’s largest pools of capital. The emirate has emerged as a magnet for financial institutions seeking to access sovereign investors as well as a rising base of private wealth.
In recent years, firms including BlackRock, Goldman Sachs and Brevan Howard have expanded operations or established offices in Abu Dhabi, attracted by supportive regulation, tax incentives and the rapid development of Abu Dhabi Global Market as a financial hub. The center has positioned itself as a gateway between East and West, offering international firms a platform to deploy capital across emerging markets.
