Dubai Family Office to Invest $8.8B to Turn the Maldives Into a Blockchain Hub

A Dubai family office managing assets for Qatari royal Sheikh Nayef bin Eid Al Thani will finance a $8.8 billion blockchain and digital assets project in the Maldives.

The deal, led by MBS Global Investments, seeks to diversify the island archipelago nation’s economy, which is mainly dependent on tourism and fishing, amid rising external debt obligations, according to a Sunday report by the Financial Times.

The investment, scheduled to roll out over five years, exceeds the country’s entire GDP, which stood at roughly $7 billion in 2023, World Bank data shows.

The Indian Ocean nation is grappling with $600-$700 million in debt due this year and another $1 billion due in 2026.

The blockchain project represents a pivot toward digital finance and international investment to ease economic pressures, even though the Maldives currently has little to no crypto footprint,  as the nation continues to court India and China for development partnerships.

The plan includes building an International Financial Centre spanning 830,000 square meters to accommodate 6,500 people and generate 16,000 jobs, potentially employing around 3% of the national population.

MBS Global Investments will finance the project through a consortium created from its network of family offices and high-net-worth individuals. It has already secured $4 to $5 billion total, per the report.

The firm’s current portfolio spans various sectors, including fintech, real estate, construction, and investment firms.

In July last year, it poured money into digital asset management firm Varys Capital, which invests in early-stage crypto projects. 

“Traditionally conservative family offices are broadening their mandates to gain portfolio exposure to blockchain offerings,” Nadeem Hussain, MBS Investments CEO, noted at the time.

Its portfolio also includes a special economic zone on an island off the coast of Malaysian Borneo, and last month met with the Ministry of Finance and Economy of Brunei to explore potential cooperation.  

Edited by Sebastian Sinclair