Abu Dhabi’s wealth fund invests in SoftBank-backed tech startup

Mubadala Investment Co. led a $700m funding round for a technology startup backed by SoftBank Group Corp., as the Abu Dhabi wealth fund diversifies its portfolio away from oil.

The fund said on Wednesday it invested in Reef Technology, a startup that manages hubs in parking lots used for food delivery and other services such as Covid-19 testing. It was joined by SoftBank Vision Fund, Oaktree, UBS AM and Target Global, Mubadala said on Twitter.

Miami-based Reef was exploring a capital raise to fund its expansion, people familiar with the matter told Bloomberg earlier this month. The firm was valued at $1bn when SoftBank acquired a stake in 2018.

Mubadala, which manages $232bn in assets, is among Gulf sovereign funds plowing their oil and natural gas wealth into technology to lessen their reliance on crude and help diversify their economies.

The fund has said over the past few years that it’s looking to boost its investments in technology. It bought a stake of about 5 per cent in Silver Lake in September and announced plans to invest $2bn in a technology fund run by the private equity firm.

Earlier this year, Mubadala joined regional and global investors that poured billions of dollars into the telecommunications and digital services business controlled by Indian billionaire Mukesh Ambani. The fund will also invest EUR200m ($234m) in German pharmaceutical company Evotec.