Forbes Middle East

What Forbes Middle East does

Forbes Middle East is a Dubai-headquartered regional franchise of the Forbes media brand, published by Arab Publisher House and operating as a bilingual (Arabic and English) digital and print business publication focused on the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region. The company was founded in 2010 and maintains a staff of 51–100 employees. Its core product is the digital platform forbesmiddleeast.com, which publishes business news, exclusive interviews, leadership profiles, and analysis targeted at C-suite executives, business owners, senior management, and high-net-worth individuals across MENA.

The company has built a differentiated product portfolio centered on proprietary annual rankings and lists, including the Top 100 Arab Family Businesses, World's Richest Arabs (covering 36 billionaires across seven countries with combined net worth of $137.3 billion), the Middle East's Most Influential CMOs, Top 100 Travel & Tourism Leaders, 100 Most Powerful Businesswomen, 50 Most Funded Startups, 30 Under 30, and Top 100 Listed Companies. These rankings use structured evaluation criteria (scale, holdings value, diversification, performance, legacy, workforce, AI/digital tool utilization, etc.) that serve as both editorial content and as standardized industry benchmarks. The underlying technology is a content management system for digital publishing, list compilation, and regional business analysis, supported by an active social media presence across Facebook, LinkedIn, Twitter, YouTube, and Instagram.

Forbes Middle East operates a multi-stream revenue model comprising recurring subscription revenue via its digital platform, advertising and brand partnership placements, and event sponsorship and ticketing revenue from large-scale summits such as the Building the Future Summit and Sustainability Leaders Summit, which gather approximately 3,000 regional decision-makers. Its go-to-market is hybrid: subscription-driven content access for executives combined with event-driven engagement and corporate sponsorship deals. No ownership structure, funding history, or investor information has been disclosed publicly, and the entity is privately held.

Name

Forbes Middle East

Legal name

Forbes Middle East

Website

https://forbesmiddleeast.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

2010

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

51–100 employees

Short description

Forbes Middle East is the Dubai-based regional Forbes franchise, publishing bilingual (Arabic and English) business journalism and proprietary annual rankings across the MENA region. It serves C-suite executives, family businesses, and high-net-worth individuals via digital subscriptions, branded content, and large-scale summits.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Business Media and Publishing

NAICS

Periodical Publishers (513120), Newspaper Publishers (51311), Directory and Mailing List Publishers (51314), Newspaper, Periodical, Book, and Directory Publishers (5131)

SIC

Periodicals: Publishing Or Publishing & Printing (2721), Newspapers: Publishing Or Publishing & Printing (2711)

akta.pro primary industry

Business, Finance & Industry Trade Magazines (MPAJAEAM)

akta.pro secondary industries

Data Journalism & News Intelligence Publishers (Indexes, Election/Market Data) (MPAJADAK), Executive Summits & Invitation-Only Forums (MPAGAGAK)

Keywords

• Business journalism
• Regional business rankings
• Digital media publishing
• Executive summits
• MENA business intelligence

Headquarters

HQ city

Dubai

HQ country

United Arab Emirates

HQ region

Middle East

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Digital Commerce or Content

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D, Others

Revenue model

1. Subscription Revenue: Forbes Middle East operates a subscription-based digital publication model, offering business journalism, exclusive rankings, and thought leadership content to regional executives and business leaders.
2. Event Sponsorships and Tickets: The company generates revenue through hosting summits and conferences such as the Building the Future Summit and Sustainability Leaders Summit. Revenue comes from attendee tickets and corporate sponsorships from companies seeking visibility among regional decision-makers.
3. Advertising and Brand Partnerships: Revenue from brand partnerships, sponsored content, and advertising placements on the digital platform targeting regional business audiences.

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels2 records

Marketing channels4 records

Core offering

Forbes Middle East is a regional business media franchise that publishes a monthly print magazine in Arabic and English and operates the forbesmiddleeast.com digital platform. Its core products are proprietary annual rankings (such as the Top 100 Arab Family Businesses, World's Richest Arabs, and Most Influential CMOs) accompanied by business news, analysis, and thought leadership content targeting MENA business audiences. The company also hosts executive summits and conferences such as the Building the Future Summit and Sustainability Leaders Summit.

Product overview

Forbes Middle East is a digital media platform and publisher that produces business news, industry analysis, and annual rankings focused on the Middle East and North Africa region. The company's product portfolio consists of its core digital media platform (forbesmiddleeast.com) along with an extensive suite of annual ranking products including the Top 100 Arab Family Businesses, World's Richest Arabs, Most Influential CMOs, Top 100 Travel & Tourism Leaders, 100 Most Powerful Businesswomen, 50 Most Funded Startups, 30 Under 30, and Top 100 Listed Companies lists. These ranking products are the primary differentiated offerings, evaluating companies and individuals across sectors including finance, energy, retail, healthcare, and technology using criteria such as scale, revenue, diversification, performance, legacy, and workforce.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Forbes Middle East Digital Platform (forbesmiddleeast.com) Subscription-based digital media platform publishing business news, industry analysis, rankings, and thought leadership content focused on the Middle East and North Africa region, targeting C-suite executives and business leaders.
• Top 100 Arab Family Businesses List Annual ranking of the largest and most influential family-owned businesses across MENA, evaluating companies based on scale, diversification, performance, legacy, and workforce size.
• World's Richest Arabs List Annual ranking of Arab billionaires and wealthiest individuals from Arabic-speaking MENA countries, tracking net worth and wealth changes.
• Middle East's Most Influential CMOs List Annual ranking recognizing the most influential Chief Marketing Officers and marketing leaders across the Middle East, evaluating marketing budgets, team size, experience, campaign impact, and AI/digital tool utilization.
• Top 100 Travel & Tourism Leaders List Annual ranking of influential leaders across aviation, hotels, destinations, and tourism development authorities in the Middle East.
• 100 Most Powerful Businesswomen List Annual ranking recognizing the most powerful female business leaders in the Middle East and North Africa across various sectors.
• 50 Most Funded Startups List Annual ranking of the most well-funded startups in the MENA region, evaluating total funding raised, sector representation, and geographic distribution.
• 30 Under 30 List Annual ranking of the most promising young entrepreneurs, pioneers, and creatives under 30 years old in the MENA region.
• Top 100 Listed Companies List Annual ranking of the largest publicly listed companies in the Middle East based on sales, assets, profits, and market value.
• Forbes Middle East Building the Future Summit Large-scale in-person summit held in Abu Dhabi targeting regional business leaders, government officials, and corporate executives to discuss urban development, infrastructure, sustainability, and AI, with revenue from tickets and corporate sponsorships.
• Forbes Middle East Sustainability Leaders Summit Regional summit convened by Forbes Middle East bringing together decision-makers to discuss sustainability topics, with revenue from attendee tickets and corporate sponsorships.

Quantifiable outcome

• Forbes Middle East Summit 2026 bringing together approximately 3,000 decision-makers to discuss regional infrastructure and development

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed Yes

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature1 record

Partnerships

One partnership is on record.

• TRENDS Research & AdvisorycoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2026During the World Government Summit 2026, TRENDS Research & Advisory and Forbes Middle East signed a strategic media cooperation agreement to collaborate on research, analysis, and knowledge sharing. The partnership aims to produce joint studies on global economic and strategic issues, especially related to AI and governance, while fostering dialogue and training programs.

Scale indicators4 records

Recent moves5 records

Expansion highlights4 records

Broad incumbents

• Bloomberg Middle East: Bloomberg's Middle East coverage includes business news, data, and events targeting regional executives and investors. It competes with Forbes Middle East for the same C-suite audience and advertising/sponsorship dollars, but with a much broader global brand and product portfolio.
• Forbes Global (Forbes Media): Forbes Media is the parent global brand and licensor of Forbes Middle East. While not a direct competitor in the MENA market, it sets brand standards, controls licensing terms, and operates overlapping global lists that intersect with Forbes Middle East's regional rankings.
• The National (UAE): The National is a major English-language news outlet based in Abu Dhabi covering regional business, politics, and culture. It competes partially with Forbes Middle East for executive readership and regional advertising, though with a broader news mandate.

Direct peers

• Arabian Business: Arabian Business is a long-established English-language business magazine and digital platform covering MENA business news, rankings, and events. It directly competes with Forbes Middle East in regional business journalism, proprietary lists, and executive summits.
• Gulf Business: Gulf Business is a leading B2B media brand covering business news, industry analysis, and rankings across the GCC. It is one of the closest direct competitors to Forbes Middle East in terms of audience, content type, and event programming.
• Arabian Gulf Business Insight (AGBI): AGBI (formerly known as Gulf News Business) is a regional business news outlet focused on GCC markets. It competes with Forbes Middle East for regional executive readership and corporate subscriptions.
• Inc. Arabia: Inc. Arabia is the regional edition of Inc. magazine covering entrepreneurship, startups, and business leadership in MENA. It overlaps with Forbes Middle East on startup and entrepreneur coverage, including proprietary rankings.
• Entrepreneur Middle East: Entrepreneur Middle East is a regional franchise of Entrepreneur magazine covering startups, SMEs, and business leadership. It competes with Forbes Middle East for audience attention and advertising spend in the regional business media space.
• Fast Company Middle East: Fast Company Middle East is a regional edition focused on innovation, technology, and business leadership. It overlaps with Forbes Middle East on executive interviews, innovation rankings, and thought leadership content targeting regional business leaders.

Others

• Mondaq: Mondaq is a knowledge-sharing platform serving professional advisers and executives with business intelligence. While not a direct competitor, it overlaps with Forbes Middle East's audience of senior professionals consuming curated business analysis and is an adjacent ecosystem participant.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/forbesme
• YouTubeyoutube.com/user/ForbesMiddleEast
• Facebookfacebook.com/forbes.ME
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/forbes-middle-east---arab-publisher-house
• Instagraminstagram.com/ForbesMiddleEast

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles2 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Forbes Middle East