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Ash & Co
Fawaz Al-Hokair's Ash & Co manages a New York-based single-family office investing US real estate and private equity from Saudi retail wealth.
Ash & Co
Ash & Co operates as the US investment arm for Fawaz Al-Hokair and his family, whose wealth was built through Al Hokair Group, a Saudi conglomerate listed on the Tadawul with operations spanning retail, entertainment, and hospitality. The New York office was established to diversify the family's holdings beyond the Middle East, focusing on stable, cash-flowing assets in North America. The family's retail business alone operates over 80 international franchise brands across 12 countries. The firm pursues a direct-investment strategy concentrated on US real estate and private equity. Ash & Co has deployed capital into trophy hotel acquisitions — it was part of a consortium that acquired the Knickerbocker Hotel in Times Square — and office properties in prime US markets. On the private equity side, the family has participated in direct deals and co-investments alongside institutional GPs, historically showing interest in consumer-facing and retail-adjacent opportunities. Geographic focus is overwhelmingly North America, with a secondary lens on European gateway cities. Ash & Co's exact headcount and assets under management remain opaque, a common trait for family-owned shops that do not market to external LPs. The New York presence provides the Al-Hokair family with a direct conduit to US deal flow, bypassing the fund-of-funds structure that many Gulf families default to. In December 2023, the firm completed a $25 million equity investment into a US-based real estate development in Miami's Brickell district, signaling continued appetite for large-scale trophy assets. The family's operating business, Al Hokair Group, employs over 12,000 people and trades on the Saudi Exchange under the ticker 1820. Ash & Co's dual-continent axis — a massive operating business in Riyadh paired with a direct-investment outpost in New York — separates it from Gulf peers who outsource US allocations to external managers. The New York team operates with the lean staffing of a family office but the deal-execution posture of a merchant bank, using the Al-Hokair balance sheet to move quickly on transactions without the reporting constraints of institutional capital.
General information
Firm type
Single Family Office
Year founded
—
AUM
Undisclosed
Location
Region
North America
Country
United States
City
New York
Corporate office
New York, NY, United States
Principals
Fawaz Al-Hokair
Principal
Sector focus
Frequently asked questions
Who runs investment decisions at Ash & Co?
Fawaz Al-Hokair is the ultimate decision-maker for allocation strategy, with a New York-based team executing direct investments in US real estate and private equity. The firm has historically hired senior-level investment professionals with backgrounds in institutional real estate and merchant banking to lead deal origination and diligence. Key team members are not widely publicized, consistent with the firm's private family-office posture.
How does Ash & Co source proprietary deal flow?
The firm leverages the Al-Hokair family's extensive network of Gulf-based family offices, institutional co-investors, and relationships with US real estate operating partners. Its New York location provides direct access to off-market transactions and middle-market private equity opportunities. Ash & Co typically avoids competitive auction processes, preferring bilateral negotiations where the family's reputation and speed of execution can be a differentiator.
Is Ash & Co structured as a single family office or does it operate more like a venture firm?
Ash & Co is a single-family office managing the Al-Hokair family's private capital; it does not accept outside investors. Its deal-making style resembles a merchant bank — making direct, concentrated bets on real estate and operating companies — but the entity functions exclusively as a proprietary investment vehicle, not a third-party fund manager.
What investment stages does Ash & Co typically target?
In private equity, the firm targets growth-equity and buyout-stage companies with established business models, especially in consumer and retail sectors that align with the family's operating history. In real estate, Ash & Co focuses on stabilized, income-producing trophy assets in gateway US cities. The firm does not typically engage in seed-stage or venture capital.
Where does the underlying wealth come from?
The wealth originates from Fawaz Al-Hokair's founding of Al Hokair Group, a Saudi conglomerate that grew into one of the largest retail and hospitality operators in the Middle East. The group holds franchise rights for international brands such as Zara, Mango, and Starbucks across the region. The family's stake in the publicly traded company and its cash flows from operations form the capital base for Ash & Co.
Does Ash & Co maintain philanthropic structures, and how are they separated?
The Al-Hokair family engages in philanthropic initiatives primarily through the Al Hokair Foundation, which is a separate entity focused on social services, healthcare, and education in Saudi Arabia. Ash & Co maintains no philanthropic mandate; its charter is exclusively investment-focused, with foundation activities kept at arm's length from the New York office.
What is Ash & Co's known posture on co-investments alongside external GPs?
The firm selectively co-invests alongside institutional private equity managers when deal size or sector expertise warrants a partnership. Ash & Co typically insists on pari passu terms and does not serve as a passive limited partner in commingled funds, preferring the control and fee efficiency of direct and co-investment structures.
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