UAE-Qatar sovereign wealth funds back PayPay’s $1.1B Nasdaq IPO, highlighting growing Gulf investment in global fintech and digital payments.
Sovereign wealth funds from the Gulf have committed to invest in the upcoming US initial public offering of Japanese digital payments company PayPay Corporation, underscoring continued Middle Eastern interest in global fintech growth.
Also Read: Paquik Secures $85K Pre-Seed to Expand UAE Crowdshipping
Abu Dhabi Investment Authority (ADIA) and Qatar Investment Authority’s subsidiary Qatar Holding have agreed to act as cornerstone investors in PayPay’s planned Nasdaq listing. According to a filing with the US Securities and Exchange Commission, the two sovereign funds will jointly purchase up to $220 million in shares alongside Visa. Individual allocations were not disclosed.
PayPay plans to sell 31.1 million American depositary shares in the offering, while SoftBank Vision Fund II, a subsidiary of SoftBank Group, is expected to offload an additional 23.9 million shares, the filing showed.
Go deeper on GCC & Africa tech — $9.99/month.
Deep dives and investor insights the free digest doesn't cover.
The IPO is expected to be priced between $17 and $20 per share, which would place the total offering size at roughly $1.1 billion. The listing will take place on the Nasdaq exchange.
PayPay reportedly delayed the start of formal investor marketing due to uncertainty linked to geopolitical tensions in the Middle East. The company is now expected to price the offering on March 11.
Financial disclosures in the filing show strong recent performance. PayPay recorded a profit of ¥103.3 billion ($656 million) in the first nine months of 2025, representing a 255 per cent increase year-on-year. Revenue during the same period rose 26 per cent to ¥278.5 billion.
The investment adds to ADIA’s recent participation in several high-profile global listings. Last month, the Abu Dhabi fund joined the IPO of Indian renewable energy company CleanMax Enviro Energy Solutions as an anchor investor. It has also backed Chinese artificial intelligence startup MiniMax as a cornerstone investor ahead of its Hong Kong listing, where shares doubled on the first day of trading.
Why the UAE-Qatar Sovereign Funds Matter to MENA
The participation of ADIA and QIA highlights the Gulf’s growing influence in global technology capital markets. Sovereign wealth funds across the UAE and Qatar are increasingly investing in high-growth sectors such as fintech, AI, and digital infrastructure. By backing companies like PayPay, Gulf investors gain exposure to Asia’s rapidly expanding digital payments ecosystem while strengthening their role as cornerstone investors in major global listings.
Engagement
