Bahrain announced more than $17 billion in landmark investment and trade agreements at its flagship Gateway Gulf 2025 forum, positioning the island nation as a key economic gateway to the Middle East.
The two-day investment forum, hosted by the Bahrain Economic Development Board (EDB) at the Four Seasons Hotel Bahrain Bay, saw the conclusion of over 60 deals aimed at accelerating foreign capital into the kingdom’s non-oil priority sectors of financial services, ICT, manufacturing, logistics, and tourism.
Finance and National Economy Minister Shaikh Salman bin Khalifa Al Khalifa, addressing the forum, emphasised Bahrain’s role as a “hub of innovation and opportunity,” confidently stating the country was entering “the age of intelligence.”
The highest-profile projects were awarded the government’s ‘Golden Licence’ status for strategic national importance. These included a partnership between technology group Beyon and Oracle to launch a sovereign cloud data centre.
Additionally, multinational dairy giant Arla Foods announced an expansion of its Bahrain facility, establishing it as the second largest dairy producer in the region.
Other significant recipients of the Golden Licence included urban developer Binaa Al Bahrain and industrial holding firm Foulath for a solar project expansion. Further major announcements at the event included Capital A signing a Letter of Intent (LOI) to explore establishing Bahrain as AirAsia’s Middle East hub, aiming to create a major bridge between Asean and the Gulf.
Separately, investment firm Investcorp announced it had completed $1.2 billion in investments in the first quarter of fiscal year 2026, and Alba formed a strategic partnership with China’s Shandong Innovation Group to optimise the global aluminium supply chain.
The success of the forum reaffirms Bahrain’s strategy to enhance trade corridors and develop a digital-first, knowledge-based economy.
avinash@gdnmedia.bh
&uuid=(email))