Private placements in the Middle East are surging as volatility from the war with Iran escalates.

Bloomberg

Wednesday, July 8, 2026 13:36 | 2 minutes read

Debt instrument issuances through private placements in the Middle East are rising, as volatility caused by the war with Iran pushes borrowers to turn to alternative financing markets.

Stefan Weiler, head of debt markets for the region at JPMorgan Chase, said the value of placements in Central and Eastern Europe, Middle East and Africa reached $33 billion so far in 2026, about ten times what it was a year ago. Meanwhile, Bloomberg data showed that private placement volumes in emerging markets globally remained largely unchanged.

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Weiler explained that borrowers from the Middle East, some of whom were severely affected by market volatility from the US-led conflict with Iran, accounted for about two-thirds of total issuance activity in Central and Eastern Europe, Middle East and Africa.

Private placements, where securities are sold directly to specific investors rather than offered publicly, provide key advantages for borrowers. Borrowing entities, including Qatar, Kuwait, and Abu Dhabi, as well as regional companies and financial institutions, can raise billions of dollars in funding quickly and away from market volatility.

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These deals also demonstrated continued investment appetite from some of the world's largest investors, even amid the war that closed the Strait of Hormuz shipping lane for weeks and saw airstrikes on Gulf Arab states.

Securities offered via private placements are not traded on public exchanges, making it difficult for investors to exit these positions. To compensate, investors demand a higher yield known as an 'illiquidity premium'.

Comparison of financing yields between private placements and bonds

The average yield on private placements in the first half of 2026 was about 5.12%, compared to a coupon rate of 3.18% for bonds issued by emerging markets in international markets during the same period, according to data compiled by Bloomberg.

QatarEnergy recorded the largest deal, raising $3.5 billion in June, with JPMorgan involved in arranging the issuance.

According to Bloomberg data, additional deals for Gulf issuers included Emirates NBD and Saudi Aramco each raising $1.5 billion in financing.

Africa also saw a revival in activity, with the latest deal a $750 million issuance last week by Dangote Group, the industrial giant based in Nigeria.

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