Family Office ClubEvents
Text or WhatsApp (Not an AI Bot):(808) 600-9260Tell me your situation

EDGE Group

مجموعة إيدج · United Arab Emirates · Middle East · Founded 2019 · State holding company · Not an IFSWF member

Report a correction
Focus

EDGE Group: what it invests in

Industrials and manufacturingTechnologyTransport and logistics
Strategic state holdingsPrivate equity

Geography Domestic and global

Scale

EDGE Group: how big it is, and on what basis

Not disclosed Estimate
Published estimate
Transparency

EDGE Group: what it publishes

3.5 of 10 Band 2 of 5

Published 2 · Partly 3 · Not published 5

Our 10 item score. It measures what is public, not how well a fund is run.

EntitiesS1
More than 35
ClustersS1
6
LaunchedS2
November 2019
As of
Orders 2022S2
Over USD 5B
As of
Deals agreed 2026S5
AKAER 100%, CMD 80%
As of
Transparency scoreS1
3.5 of 10

At a glance. EDGE is Abu Dhabi's state-owned defence and advanced technology group, launched in November 2019 from several state defence companies. It runs more than 35 entities in six clusters, from missiles and drones to cyber and space, and buys or partners with foreign firms to add capability. It is an operating group and publishes no fund size. S1 S2 S4

Key points

  • More than 35 entities in six clusters, including missiles and weapons, platforms, space and cyber, and homeland security. S1
  • Agreed in 2026 to buy 100 percent of AKAER in Brazil and 80 percent of CMD in Italy. S5 S4
  • Took majority control of Milrem Robotics in Estonia and ANAVIA in Switzerland in 2023. S2
  • Runs joint ventures with Leonardo, Fincantieri and Indra in the UAE. S6 S2
  • Orders passed USD 5 billion in 2022, about a third of them exports. S2
  • Paid for the CMD deal from its own resources. S4

Interesting facts

  • It launched a test range island, X Range, open for commercial use. S2
  • It launched its own space company, Fada, in September 2024. S2
  • It counts about 160 products after launching 12 at the 2023 Dubai Airshow. S2

Mandate and goals

EDGE aims to bring new technologies to market faster, build sovereign defence capability for national security and export, and make the UAE a hub for future industries. S1

  • Build sovereign defence and security capability. S1
  • Grow exports of UAE-made systems. S1 S2
  • Acquire foreign technology and engineering skills. S5 S4
  • Develop the UAE as an advanced industry hub. S1

How it invests

IndustriesIndustrials and manufacturing, Technology, Transport and logistics S1
Asset classesStrategic state holdings, Private equity S1
StagesBuyout, Growth S2
GeographyDomestic and global. UAE base with acquisitions in Latin America and Europe S2 S5
Direct / through funds / co-investYes / No / Yes S2
Ticket sizeDeal prices are generally not disclosed. S4
Deal sizes seenStakes of 50 to 100 percent
External managersNo external managers; acquisitions are made by the group. S1
Co-investment programmeJoint ventures with industrial partners rather than financial co-investors S2

Past investments

YearInvestmentTypeSectorStageAmountStake
2026AKAER. Aerospace engineering firm founded 1992 in Sao Jose dos Campos; subject to approvals. S5Direct investmentIndustrials and manufacturingBuyoutNot disclosed100%
2026Costruzioni Motori Diesel (CMD). Propulsion maker; existing owners keep a significant minority; closing expected by end 2026. S4Direct investmentIndustrials and manufacturingBuyoutNot disclosed80%
2025Leonardo joint venture. Milestone reached toward a joint venture in the UAE. S6Joint venture or partnershipIndustrials and manufacturingGrowthNot published
2025Edge-Anduril Production Alliance. Alliance with Anduril focused on autonomous systems. S2Joint venture or partnershipTechnologyGrowthNot published
2024Fada. Space company launched by the group. S2New company or platformTechnologyVentureNot published
2024MAESTRAL. Abu Dhabi shipbuilding joint venture with Fincantieri. S2Joint venture or partnershipIndustrials and manufacturingGrowthNot published
2024Radar joint venture with Indra. Develops and builds radar systems in the UAE. S2Joint venture or partnershipTechnologyGrowthNot published
2024Condor Non-Lethal Technologies. Majority stake in a Brazilian security products maker. S2Direct investmentIndustrials and manufacturingBuyoutNot published51%
2024International Golden Group. Majority stake acquired in January 2024. S2Direct investmentIndustrials and manufacturingBuyoutNot published
2023Strategic Development Fund. Took full ownership of the Abu Dhabi investment company. S2Direct investmentFinancial servicesBuyoutNot published100%
2023ANAVIA. Unmanned helicopter maker. S2Direct investmentIndustrials and manufacturingBuyoutNot published52%
2023FLARIS. Small jet aircraft maker. S2Direct investmentIndustrials and manufacturingGrowthNot published50%
2023SIATT. Smart weapons specialist. S2Direct investmentIndustrials and manufacturingGrowthNot published50%
2023Etimad Holding and OryxLabs. Technology services group (100 percent) and cybersecurity firm. S2Direct investmentTechnologyBuyoutNot published
2023Milrem Robotics. Majority stake in an unmanned ground vehicle developer. S2Direct investmentTechnologyBuyoutNot published

Case studies

Milrem Robotics: buying European autonomy know-how S2

  • What: Took a majority stake in the Estonian unmanned ground vehicle developer.
  • When: February 2023
  • Size: Not disclosed
  • Why: To add robotic and autonomous land systems to its portfolio, one of its stated growth areas.

Brazil: a second home market S2 S5

  • What: Opened a Brasilia office, bought 50 percent of SIATT and 51 percent of Condor, then agreed to buy all of AKAER.
  • When: 2023 to 2026
  • Size: Not disclosed
  • Why: To co-develop missiles with the Brazilian Navy and gain aerospace engineering capacity.
  • Outcome: AKAER deal subject to conditions and approvals.

CMD: propulsion in Italy S4

  • What: Agreed to buy 80 percent of Costruzioni Motori Diesel, funded from own resources.
  • When: May 2026
  • Size: Not disclosed
  • Why: To secure engine and propulsion capability while the founding owners stay invested.
  • Outcome: Closing expected by end 2026.

Investment process

A board chaired by Faisal Al Bannai oversees the group; the Managing Director and CEO and cluster presidents lead acquisitions and partnerships. S1 S5

How to approach: No investor programme is published; companies and partners can use the contact page on the EDGE website. S7

Size and returns

  • Headline size: Not disclosed (Published estimate) S1
  • Returns: the fund does not publish a return figure.

Leadership

NameTitle
Faisal Al BannaiChairman of the Board S1
Hamad Al MararManaging Director and CEO S5
Dr Chaouki KasmiGroup Chief Technology Officer S1
Khaled Ahmed Al ZaabiPresident, Platforms and Systems S1
Saif Ali Al DahbashiPresident, Missiles and Weapons S1
Waleid Al MesmariPresident, Advanced Sensing S1
Omar Al ZaabiPresident, Commercial S1

Governance and transparency

  • Legal basis: Public joint stock company owned by the Government of Abu Dhabi S4
  • Oversight: Board of directors chaired by Faisal Al Bannai S1
  • Publishes a code of conduct; no financial statements are published. S1

Transparency score: 3.5 of 10 (band 2 of 5). Our own 10-item rubric; see the methodology page.

  • Published: holdings or deal list, named leadership. S1 S5 S7
  • Partly published: geographic or sector split, governance and mandate documents, regular reporting schedule. S1 S7
  • Not published: total assets, annual return, long-term returns, asset allocation, audited financial statements. S1

History

DateEvent
2019-11-05EDGE launched from state defence companies. S2
2022-01-31Board and management changes; DIGITAL14 later merged in as KATIM. S2
2023-02-15Majority stake in Milrem Robotics. S2
2023-12Full ownership of the Strategic Development Fund. S2
2024-05MAESTRAL shipbuilding venture with Fincantieri. S2
2024-09Space company Fada launched. S2
2025-11-19Leonardo joint venture milestone. S6
2026-05-14CMD agreement. S4
2026-07-16AKAER agreement. S5

For family offices

EDGE buys companies outright or in majority stakes and partners with industrial groups; it has no programme for financial co-investors. S2

Common questions

When was EDGE launched?

November 2019. S1 S2

Who runs EDGE?

Faisal Al Bannai chairs the board; Hamad Al Marar is Managing Director and CEO. S1 S5

Who owns EDGE?

The Government of Abu Dhabi. S4

Is it an investment fund?

No. It is a state-owned operating group that also acquires companies. S1

Is it an IFSWF member?

No. S3

All sovereign wealth funds in Middle East · All state holding companys · All funds in United Arab Emirates

Sources

  1. S1EDGE Group, About
  2. S2Wikipedia, Edge Group (revision of 12 August 2026)
  3. S3IFSWF, members list
  4. S4Global Banking and Finance Review, EDGE to acquire 80 percent of CMD
  5. S5WAM, EDGE to acquire 100 percent stake in Brazilian aerospace firm
  6. S6Leonardo, EDGE Group and Leonardo joint venture milestone
  7. S7EDGE Group, home page

Disclaimer

Informational only. SovereignWealthFunds.com is an independent public-source reference. It is not affiliated with or endorsed by any fund named on it, and it is not investment, legal or tax advice. Figures are as of the dates shown next to them and may have changed; please read each fund's official pages, linked on its profile. To report an error, use the contact page. Copyright SovereignWealthFunds.com. All rights reserved.

Richard C. Wilson

Talk to a human.

I'm Richard C. Wilson, founder of Family Office Club. I read the messages that come in through this site myself. Text or WhatsApp me at (808) 600-9260, or email Richard@SovereignWealthFunds.com. Thank you.

Tell me your situation