Sectors — IFC Oman
Asset Management & Funds
A regulated fund platform at the intersection of the Gulf, South Asia, and East Africa.
Asset management at IFC Oman
A regulated fund platform, close to the capital.
IFC Oman offers fund managers a regulated platform that is physically and commercially connected to the capital flows and investment opportunities of the Gulf, South Asia, and East Africa.
Oman’s institutional investor base — the State General Reserve Fund, the Oman Investment Authority, and a growing private pension and insurance sector — is active and expanding. GCC sovereign wealth funds collectively manage trillions in assets and are increasing their allocations to alternative strategies, private equity, infrastructure, and real assets across the developing world.
Islamic finance-compliant fund structures are in growing demand from the Gulf, South Asia, and Southeast Asia simultaneously. IFC Oman is positioned to serve all three of those demand streams from a single regulatory platform.
Structuring, domiciliation, and management
Proposition
What sets IFC Oman apart for fund managers.
01
Proximity to capital
A regulated address and a team on the ground, close to GCC sovereign wealth funds, family offices, and institutional investors that expect a genuine regional presence from their managers.
02
Tax-efficient economics
Corporate tax exemption on eligible fund management income, no withholding tax on distributions to non-resident investors, and no personal income tax for non-Omani fund professionals.
03
Common law framework
Limited partnership agreements, investment management agreements, subscription documents, and side letters governed by IFC Oman’s common law framework and directly enforceable in-jurisdiction.
04
Islamic finance alignment
A dedicated Shari’a-compliant framework for Mudaraba, Wakala, and other Islamic fund structures, with regulatory oversight familiar with the specific governance of Islamic fund management.
05
Indian Ocean corridor reach
A regulated platform positioned to serve the Gulf, South Asian, and East African investment corridors from a single domicile, with a fund passport recognised across the region.
06
Institutional investor base
Direct access to Oman’s sovereign investor base and a growing pension, insurance, and family office market seeking regional and cross-border allocation opportunities.
07
Sandbox for new strategies
Tokenised fund structures, DeFi-integrated vehicles, and digital asset funds can pilot inside the regulatory sandbox before committing to full authorisation.
08
Independent regulation
Authorisation and supervision by the IFC Oman Regulatory Authority under international standards for fund management conduct, custody, and disclosure.
Fund structures
Eight fund structures.
IFC Oman’s regulatory framework supports the establishment and management of the following fund types, subject to authorisation by the Regulatory Authority.
01
Closed-ended private equity funds
Buyout, growth equity, and venture strategies.
Closed-ended limited partnership structures for buyout, growth equity, and venture strategies targeting GCC, South Asian, and African markets.
02
Open-ended funds (UCITS-equivalent)
Liquid strategies for professional investors.
Liquid strategies across equities, fixed income, and mixed assets, distributed to professional investors under a UCITS-equivalent operating framework.
03
Real estate investment vehicles
Property funds and REITs.
Property funds and REITs targeting Oman real estate and regional real asset strategies, structured under IFC Oman’s common law framework.
04
Infrastructure funds
Project finance and infrastructure equity.
Project finance and infrastructure equity strategies aligned with Gulf and African development programmes, ports, energy, and connectivity.
05
Shari'a-compliant fund structures
Mudaraba and Wakala vehicles.
Mudaraba and Wakala fund structures for Islamic investors across the GCC, South Asia, and Southeast Asia, with regulatory oversight familiar with Islamic fund governance.
06
Fund of funds
Diversified allocations across external managers.
Diversified alternative investment vehicles investing across external managers, with a single point of access for professional and institutional investors.
07
Co-investment vehicles
Single-deal or programmatic co-investment SPVs.
Single-deal or programmatic co-investment SPVs alongside a main fund, enabling limited partners to deploy incremental capital into selected transactions.
08
Feeder funds
Channels into an offshore master fund.
Vehicles that channel investor capital into an offshore master fund structure, giving regional investors a regulated on-ramp into global strategies.
At a glance
The fund platform in numbers.
The argument
Four reasons sponsors are looking at IFC Oman now.
Proximity
01
Proximity to capital
The most important thing a fund manager can do is be close to its investors. GCC sovereign wealth funds, family offices, and institutional investors increasingly want fund managers to have a genuine regional presence, with a regulated address and a team on the ground. An IFC Oman-domiciled fund or fund manager demonstrates that commitment in the only way that counts: by being there.
After-tax economics
02
Tax-efficient fund structures
Income earned by IFC Oman-licensed fund management entities from their eligible activities is exempt from Omani corporate income tax under the Founding Law. Dividends and carried interest distributions from IFC Oman fund vehicles to non-resident investors are exempt from Omani withholding tax. Non-Omani fund management professionals working within IFC Oman pay no Omani personal income tax. The combination makes IFC Oman structurally competitive with other fund domicile jurisdictions on after-tax economics for managers and investors alike.
Legal certainty
03
Common law framework
Fund documentation, limited partnership agreements, investment management agreements, subscription agreements, side letters, is governed by IFC Oman’s common law framework. Institutional investors familiar with English law fund documentation can engage with IFC Oman-domiciled vehicles without adapting to a civil law or hybrid legal system.
Islamic finance
04
Islamic finance alignment
IFC Oman’s dedicated Islamic finance framework covers Shari’a-compliant fund structures. Fund managers seeking to access GCC and South Asian Islamic investor capital can structure, domicile, and manage their Shari’a-compliant vehicles from within IFC Oman, with regulatory oversight that understands the specific governance requirements of Islamic fund management.
Tax treatment
A tax framework built for fund economics.
The IFC Oman tax framework for fund managers is structured around three pillars that, taken together, make the centre competitive with leading fund domiciles on after-tax outcomes.
First, income earned by IFC Oman-licensed fund management entities from eligible activities is exempt from Omani corporate income tax under the Founding Law, for a period of up to 50 years from the law’s enforcement date.
Second, dividends and carried interest distributions from IFC Oman fund vehicles to non-resident investors are exempt from Omani withholding tax.
Third, non-Omani fund management professionals working within IFC Oman pay no Omani personal income tax.
The tax framework page covers the full scope, including transfer pricing standards, double taxation treaty access, and the alignment with OECD substance requirements.
Innovation
A regulatory sandbox for emerging fund strategies.
Fund managers exploring novel investment strategies, tokenised fund structures, DeFi-integrated vehicles, or digital asset funds, can test within IFC Oman’s regulatory sandbox before committing to full authorisation. IFC Oman’s FinTech and innovation framework explicitly covers investment management applications, allowing supervised pilots, time-limited authorisations, and a structured path from sandbox to full licensing.
Continue exploring
The eight pillars of IFC Oman.
Move between the sectors of IFC Oman’s regulated platform.
01
Asset Management & Funds
Regulated fund management for the Gulf, South Asia, and Africa.
You are here
Trade finance, corporate banking, investment banking, and private wealth.
Law, accounting, audit, compliance, and management consulting.
Cross-border holding vehicles, PE and VC platforms, family offices, joint ventures.
Launch your fund in Oman.
A single point of contact across licensing, fund structuring, and settlement. The IFC Oman desk works with sponsors from first conversation through launch.