Fund of hedge funds firm Liongate Capital Management has set up shop in Dubai and appointed Fahad Al-Bader to head up the new outpost.

Before joining Liongate in 2008, Al-Bader was head of hedge funds at the Kuwait Fund, head of alternative investments at Ryada Capital and an Investment Analyst at KIA (the Kuwait Investment Authority).

“The establishment of the Dubai office is an important and integral part of our international growth strategy, and underlines our focus on allocating resources to bring us closer to our investors, both current and future,” said Randall Dillard, CEO of Liongate Capital Management. “Being closer to our investors in the region is an additional way to help them navigate through these difficult times.”

As part of the Dubai office, Liongate Capital Management has also established an advisory board comprised of seasoned regional investors in hedge funds.

“With investors increasingly seeking to diversify their portfolios to include alternative investments, the long-term potential for the growth of the hedge-funds market in the Middle East, North Africa and India is strong,” said Omar Bin Sulaiman, Governor of the Dubai International Financial Centre.

Liongate Capital Management manages over US$2.3 billion in funds of hedge funds, managed accounts and tailored portfolios.