Qatar announced on Sunday the creation of Doha Investment, a new division of the Qatar Investment Authority (QIA) tasked with managing the sovereign wealth fund’s domestic investments. The announcement was made by Prime Minister Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al Thani at a special edition of the Qatar Economic Forum held in New York, after the May edition was cancelled following Iranian missile and drone strikes on Gulf states.
Presenting the new division, Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al Thani said Qatar wants to strengthen the role of the private sector in its economic growth. The division will back the country’s strongest companies, help emerging firms to expand, deepen capital markets and attract international capital and expertise to the effort, he added.
A third of QIA’s assets under dedicated leadership
Doha Investment will act as the designated manager of the QIA’s domestic portfolio. It will initially oversee 45 state-owned companies, representing roughly a third of the sovereign wealth fund’s total assets, according to Sheikh Faisal bin Thani Al Thani, Qatar’s Minister of Commerce and Industry, who will take the roles of managing director and vice-chairman of the new entity.
Sheikh Faisal presented the launch not as something new but as a consolidation, noting that the idea had been under discussion for more than a decade. The QIA, which does not publish full data on its holdings, is estimated at around €505 billion in assets under management by research firm Global SWF. Founded in 2005, it was originally built around a doctrine of deploying capital abroad.
Katara Hospitality among the entities involved
The fund has gradually built a significant domestic presence, growing companies that have become national champions: Qatar Airways, QNB bank, telecoms operator Ooredoo, developer Qatari Diar and hotel operator Katara Hospitality. The latter, the country’s largest hotel owner, developer and operator, holds among others the Raffles and Fairmont hotels at Katara Towers in Lusail, which opened for the 2022 World Cup.
The new division’s remit goes beyond managing existing assets: it covers strengthening today’s national champions, creating new growth drivers, supporting privatisation and widening private-sector participation, as part of a broader effort to diversify the Qatari economy, Sheikh Faisal said.
A move made under geopolitical pressure
The launch of Doha Investment comes at a time of financial strain for the gas-producing state. The US-Israeli war against Iran and the resulting closure of the Strait of Hormuz have made reliable exports of liquefied natural gas impossible, even though LNG remains Qatar’s main source of revenue despite diversification efforts in recent years. The regional hotel sector, exposed to the same tensions, has felt the consequences directly, as detailed in our analysis of luxury hotels in the Middle East facing a crisis that could drag on.
Qatar is now counting on its non-oil economy to offset part of the shortfall. According to the Qatar Central Bank and the National Planning Council, the non-hydrocarbon economy grew by 4.8% in 2025, against overall real GDP growth of 2.9%, and accounted for 65.5% of real GDP in the third quarter of 2026.
At a glance by The Hospitality Tribune
Qatar creates Doha Investment to manage QIA’s domestic portfolio
New division will oversee 45 state-owned enterprises, roughly a third of QIA’s assets
Sheikh Faisal bin Thani Al Thani named managing director and vice-chairman
Katara Hospitality, Qatar’s largest hotel owner, is among the entities involved
Launch follows Strait of Hormuz disruption squeezing Qatar’s LNG revenue
QIA estimated at $580bn in assets under management, according to Global SWF
