Oman staged the Oman Investment Forum 2025 in the United Kingdom this week, positioning the Sultanate’s fiscal reforms, headline investment projects and regulatory updates in front of international financiers as Muscat leans harder into post oil diversification.
Held in London by Oman’s Ministry of Finance in cooperation with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the forum was framed by officials as a confidence building exercise aimed at attracting new capital and strengthening long running economic ties with Britain. The event also served as a lead in to scheduled bilateral consultations under the Oman UK Strategic Advisory Group architecture, a mechanism both governments use to coordinate economic priorities.
What the forum set out to do
According to the organisers, the forum’s core message was that Oman’s investment story is no longer limited to hydrocarbons, and that its public finance reset is meant to make the broader transition investable.
Speakers highlighted three themes that have become central to Oman’s outreach to global capital:
Fiscal credibility through reforms designed to stabilise public finances and improve debt metrics
Bankable diversification built around logistics, manufacturing, tourism, mining, fisheries and renewable energy
Clearer investment rules that aim to reduce friction for foreign investors, including updates to regulatory frameworks and capital market development
A keynote presentation by senior Omani officials focused on “paths to financial stability,” reflecting a deliberate emphasis on macro fundamentals as the foundation for new deal flow.
Who attended and why it matters
The Omani delegation was led by Nasser bin Khamis Al Jashmi, chairman of Oman’s Tax Authority and head of the Omani side of the Omani British Strategic Consultation Team, with participation from government departments and related institutions.
For Oman, the UK remains a high value venue for reaching global investors in one room, including asset managers, infrastructure funds and strategic investors who use London as a base for Middle East allocations. For the UK, the pitch aligns with a broader push to deepen Gulf investment links, including frameworks meant to encourage sovereign and private capital flows in both directions.
The numbers Oman is leaning on
Forum materials and related briefings pointed to Oman’s improving fiscal position and a rebound in investor sentiment, citing a rise in the stock of foreign direct investment and continued inflows during 2025.
The sales pitch comes as external ratings agencies have also taken a more positive view of Oman’s fiscal trajectory. In mid 2025, Moody’s upgraded Oman’s sovereign ratings to investment grade, a milestone Omani officials have frequently pointed to as validation of reform momentum.
From roadshow to pipeline
Investment forums can easily become ceremonial. Oman’s challenge is turning London interest into a pipeline of signed deals and executed projects, particularly in capital intensive sectors like logistics, industrial zones and clean energy where timelines are long and global competition is fierce.
What makes the 2025 edition notable is the way it sits inside a wider bilateral framework rather than standing alone. The forum was presented as part of structured Oman UK economic coordination that includes periodic meetings and technical workstreams, an approach designed to keep projects moving after the ballroom lights go out.
What to watch next
Signals worth tracking after the forum:
Project level announcements tied to specific sites, concession terms or timelines
Updates on investment facilitation including licensing, land access and dispute resolution improvements
Capital market steps that expand financing options beyond bank lending, such as debt issuance frameworks and listing pipelines
Follow through from bilateral mechanisms that can convert broad interest into targeted sector partnerships
If Oman can pair its macro narrative with repeatable project execution, London style investor convenings become less about reassurance and more about allocation decisions.
