Blue Owl Capital Hires Haitham Abdulkarim to Oversee Institutional Business in Middle East

• Haitham will focus on scaling Blue Owl's investment and operations teams across key Middle Eastern markets including Abu Dhabi and Dubai  

NEW YORK, May 14, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- Blue Owl Capital Inc. ("Blue Owl") (NYSE: OWL), a leading alternative asset manager, announced today the hiring of Haitham Abdulkarim to oversee the company's institutional business in the Middle East. His initial focus will be on scaling Blue Owl's Abu Dhabi and Dubai offices, the former which will serve as the company's flagship office in the region. The hire is part of a strategic push by Blue Owl as the company seeks to enhance and deepen the firm's coverage of key regional family offices, pension, and sovereign wealth funds.

Haitham previously served as Head of UAE at BlackRock, where he led client strategy and engagement. Prior to that, Haitham was responsible for promoting BlackRock's private markets offering to investors in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. He was also part of the founding team that established the BlackRock Middle East Infrastructure Fund, the firm's first product dedicated to the Middle East.

Prior to BlackRock, Haitham was Head of Investor Relations at Mubadala-backed Waha Capital in Abu Dhabi, and previously led investor relations at Samena Capital, a pan-Asia private equity firm based in Dubai. Haitham began his career in Mergers & Acquisitions, with roles at HSBC Global Banking & Markets and BNP Paribas CIB in Dubai and Singapore, respectively.

Blue Owl Co-CEOs Doug Ostrover and Marc Lipschultz said, "Hiring Haitham highlights Blue Owl's commitment to deepening our relationships and more seamlessly collaborating with our Middle Eastern investment partners. Our approach to the Middle East has always been to provide market-specific products and solutions tailored to the region's sophisticated investors. By expanding our on-the-ground capabilities in the market, we will be able to further drive value for our partners in the region."

Blue Owl recently received a license in the Dubai International Financial Centre (DIFC) and is awaiting final approval for a license in Abu Dhabi Global Market (ADGM), which is expected in the coming months, at which point the company will officially open the Abu Dhabi office.

Haitham Abdulkarim said, "It has been amazing witnessing Blue Owl's exponential growth over the past three years as the firm continues to expand and foster partnerships with some of the most prominent global investors. I am excited to join such a preeminent institution and further scale the firm's Middle Eastern coverage including Abu Dhabi and Dubai."

About Blue Owl

Blue Owl (NYSE: OWL) is a leading asset manager that is redefining alternatives.

With over $174 billion in assets under management as of March 31, 2024, we invest across three multi-strategy platforms: Credit, GP Strategic Capital, and Real Estate. Anchored by a strong permanent capital base, we provide businesses with private capital solutions to drive long-term growth and offer institutional and individual investors differentiated alternative investment opportunities that aim to deliver strong performance, risk-adjusted returns, and capital preservation.

Together with over 725 experienced professionals globally, Blue Owl brings the vision and discipline to create the exceptional. To learn more, visit www.blueowl.com. 

Forward Looking Statements

Certain statements made in this release are "forward looking statements" within the meaning of the "safe harbor" provisions of the United States Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. When used in this press release, the words "estimates," "projected," "expects," "anticipates," "forecasts," "plans," "intends," "believes," "seeks," "may," "will," "would," "should," "future," "propose," "target," "goal," "objective," "outlook" and variations of these words or similar expressions (or the negative versions of such words or expressions) are intended to identify forward-looking statements. Any such forward-looking statements are made pursuant to the safe harbor provisions available under applicable securities laws and speak only as of the date made. Blue Owl assumes no obligation to update or revise any such forward-looking statements except as required by law.

These forward-looking statements are not guarantees of future performance, conditions or results, and involve a number of known and unknown risks, uncertainties, assumptions and other important factors, many of which are outside Blue Owl's control, that could cause actual results or outcomes to differ materially from those discussed in the forward-looking statements.

Important factors, among others, that may affect actual results or outcomes include the inability to recognize the anticipated benefits of strategic acquisitions; costs related to acquisitions; the inability to maintain the listing of Blue Owl's shares on the New York Stock Exchange; Blue Owl's ability to manage growth; Blue Owl's ability to execute its business plan and meet its projections; potential litigation involving Blue Owl; changes in applicable laws or regulations; and the possibility that Blue Owl may be adversely affected by other economic, business, geo-political and competitive factors.

Investor Contact
Ann Dai
Head of Investor Relations
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Media Contact
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Principal, Corporate Communications & Government Affairs
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SOURCE Blue Owl Capital