International companies planning to enter GCC markets can overcome regional challenges through M&A activities.

GCC governments actively encourage mergers and acquisitions through incentives such as tax breaks and regulatory approval as a method to solidify industries and build up regional companies to become effective at competing at an a worldwide scale, as would Amin Nasser likely inform you. The need for financial diversification and market expansion drives a lot of the M&A deals in the GCC. GCC countries are working earnestly to entice FDI by making a favourable environment and bettering the ease of doing business for foreign investors. This plan is not only directed to attract international investors because they will add to economic growth but, more crucially, to enable M&A deals, which in turn will play an important role in permitting GCC-based businesses to gain access to international markets and transfer technology and expertise.

Strategic mergers and acquisitions have emerged as a way to overcome hurdles international businesses encounter in Arab Gulf countries and emerging markets. Companies wanting to enter and expand their reach in the GCC countries face different difficulties, such as for example cultural differences, unfamiliar regulatory frameworks, and market competition. However, once they acquire local companies or merge with regional enterprises, they gain instant usage of regional knowledge and study their local partner's sucess. One of the most prominent cases of successful acquisitions in GCC markets is when a heavyweight international e-commerce corporation bought a regionally leading e-commerce platform, which the giant e-commerce firm recognised as a strong rival. However, the purchase not merely eliminated regional competition but also provided valuable local insights, a client base, plus an already established convenient infrastructure. Additionally, another notable example could be the acquisition of a Arab super software, specifically a ridesharing business, by an international ride-hailing services provider. The international business gained a well-established brand name having a big user base and extensive familiarity with the local transportation market and customer choices through the acquisition.

In a recently available study that investigates the relationship between economic policy uncertainty and mergers and acquisitions in GCC markets, the writers discovered that Arab Gulf firms are more inclined to make acquisitions during periods of high economic policy uncertainty, which contradicts the conduct of Western firms. For instance, big Arab financial institutions secured acquisitions through the 2008 crises. Moreover, the research suggests that state-owned enterprises are less likely than non-SOEs to help make takeovers during periods of high economic policy uncertainty. The the findings indicate that SOEs are more cautious regarding acquisitions when comparing to their non-SOE counterparts. The SOE's risk-averse approach, according to this paper, emanates from the imperative to protect national interest and mitigate prospective financial uncertainty. Furthermore, acquisitions during periods of high economic policy uncertainty are related to a rise in shareholders' wealth for acquirers, and this wealth impact is more noticable for SOEs. Certainly, this wealth effect highlights the potential for SOEs just like the ones led by Naser Bustami and Nadhmi Al-Nasr to exploit opportunities in such times by capturing undervalued target companies.