CMA Grants Goldman Sachs Kuwait's First Institutional Marketing Permission for Foreign Funds

The Capital Markets Authority has granted Goldman Sachs International permission to carry out institutional marketing of units of collective investment schemes established outside Kuwait, in an announcement published in Kuwait Al-Youm Issue 1804, page 230, dated 16 August 2026.

The permission covers two funds: West Street Mezzanine Partners IX Offshore LP and West Street Strategic Solutions II Offshore LP. It was granted under Annex No. 4 (Institutional Marketing of Units of a Collective Investment Scheme Established Outside Kuwait) of Appendix No. 1 of Module Thirteen (Collective Investment Schemes) of the Executive Bylaws of Law No. 7 of 2010. It runs for one calendar year from the Authority's approval and expires on 6 August 2027.

According to CMA statements reported in the Kuwaiti press, this is the first authorisation of its kind. Institutional marketing allows a firm to offer foreign fund units to clients who are professional by nature, a category that covers government entities, licensed and regulated financial institutions, investment funds and companies with paid-up capital of at least KWD 1 million. It operates alongside the private placement route, which WEFAQ has covered in earlier articles, as a second regulated door for foreign funds into Kuwait.

WEFAQ's view: the first institutional marketing permission gives international asset managers a tested precedent. Managers weighing access to Kuwaiti institutional capital now have two clear routes, each with its own conditions, and the choice between them should be made early in fund structuring.

Source: Kuwait Al-Youm Issue 1804, page 230, dated 16 August 2026; CMA statements reported by Times Kuwait and Zawya, August 2026.

This article is provided for general information only and does not constitute legal advice. For advice specific to your circumstances, please contact WEFAQ Law Firm.