Former Qatar prime minister rejoins dealmaking stage

Qatar's diplomat-investor Sheikh Hamad bin Jassim al-Thani has jumped back on to the global investment stage with two large transactions, marking the end of a quiet period for the dealmaker since he left public office last year.

Last month's acquisition of Africa-focused independent producer Heritage Oil for £924m has been followed by a €1.75bn injection into Deutsche Bank.

Sheikh Hamad relinquished his posts of prime minister, foreign minister and head of the Qatar Investment Authority after his ally, the former Qatari emir, abdicated in favour of his son, Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad al-Thani in June last year.

Sheikh Hamad, known as HBJ, was the go-to person for bankers and officials seeking investment from Qatar's sovereign wealth fund. As the richest man in one of the world's wealthiest countries, he often co-invested personally in these deals.

"He always did these deals in the past, for himself and the government," says a senior Qatari banker. "Now he is more focused on himself."

Paramount, Sheikh Hamad's vehicle which is investing in Deutsche, was set to invest in the unsuccessful merger of Greece's Alpha and EFG Eurobank in the midst of the eurozone crisis in 2011.

Another HBJ vehicle, Precision Capital, bought Dexia's Luxembourg unit and KBL private bank in 2011.

The Sheikh's personal wealth has also grown after the government bought him and other investors out of a 50 per cent stake in Qatar Airways for an undisclosed sum.

Qatar Holding, the direct investment arm of the country's sovereign wealth fund, has meanwhile adopted a more conservative approach since Ahmed al-Sayed, Sheikh Hamad's protegee, took over after Qatar's political transition.

Under Sheikh Hamad, Qatar Holding had pursued a frenetic pace as it sought to deploy $30bn-$40bn of surplus gas revenues a year.

The sheikh's family office with a team of Doha-based professionals has been "very busy" over the past couple of months, insiders say.

"HBJ is more active than Qatar itself," says another banker in the Gulf.

The Deutsche deal bears the hallmarks of the strategy he formulated for Qatar's sovereign fund during the financial crisis - supporting struggling blue-chip lenders in their hours of need.

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The sheikh co-invested with QIA in two cash injections into Barclays in 2008 that amounted to £6.1bn. Qatar also became a significant investor in Credit Suisse that year.

These deals, while financially lucrative for Qatar and neighbouring Abu Dhabi, also sparked controversy.

The UK authorities have stepped up their probe into fees Barclays paid to Qatari investors during the capital raising.

As Qatar's government invested in Credit Suisse, Sheikh Hamad also acted as the bank's local partner until 2012, infuriating competitors who felt they would be frozen out of lucrative advisory deals.

Qatar Holding now has stakes in a geographically diverse range of lenders, such as Banco Santander's Brazilian unit, Bank of America and the Agricultural Bank of China.

Qatar Holding's investment criteria also directed interest into Germany, where the fund has taken stakes in companies such as Hochtief and Siemens.

His most renowned move, which elevated Qatar to the top table of global investors, was Qatar Holding's 2009 investment in the complicated VW-Porsche merger.

The deal was straight out of the sheikh's playbook, reaping financial reward through delicate diplomacy.

Sheikh Hamad, a Porsche devotee, flew to Germany for meetings with chancellor Angela Merkel to push through a merger that ended decades of family feuding between the two brands.

Since the domestic political transition, he has adopted a low profile in Doha, where officials say swingeing cuts are expected as the country adjusts to life under the youthful emir.

Qatar has come under intense criticism for labour abuses as it starts to build the infrastructure needed for its controversial hosting of the 2022 World Cup.

Doha has also been ostracised by its neighbours for supporting Islamist groups during the Arab spring, a policy marshalled by Sheikh Hamad and the former emir.

As the new emir, Sheikh Tamim, deals with the fallout, Sheikh Hamad has returned to his first love - doing deals.

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