Recent data from Brand Finance revealed that Kuwait owns 4 percent of the total intangible assets in the Middle East, valued at approximately $2.4 trillion, ranking third after Saudi Arabia, which led the region with 66 percent ($1.6 trillion), and the United Arab Emirates, which followed with 29 percent.
Intangible assets — such as brands, patents, and intellectual property — are non-physical assets that hold substantial economic value and play a key role in company valuation and long-term growth.
According to the Brand Finance Intangible Assets Report, the Middle East emerged as the only region worldwide to record growth in the value of declared intangible assets, posting a 17 percent increase in 2025. In contrast, undeclared intangible assets fell by 6 percent, reports Al-Rai daily.
The report also noted that 83 percent of total asset value remains undisclosed on company balance sheets, underscoring a persistent gap in financial transparency.
Saudi Arabia’s intangible asset value dropped from $1.9 trillion in 2024 to $1.6 trillion in 2025, largely due to a 16 percent decline in the oil and gas sector.
Meanwhile, the UAE saw exceptional growth, with the value of its intangible assets nearly doubling by 95 percent, driven by the banking sector, which has now become the second-largest source of value in the region after oil and gas.
Globally, Brand Finance projected that the total value of intangible assets owned by the world’s largest companies will reach $97.6 trillion in 2025, a 23 percent increase from 2024 — the highest since tracking began in 1996.
The United States continues to dominate, holding 78 percent of global intangible asset value, surpassing Denmark, which declined to 67 percent.
Among companies, Nvidia topped the list with $4.3 trillion in intangible assets — a 50 percent jump from last year — followed by Microsoft, Apple, Amazon, and Alphabet.
Annie Brown, Director of Valuation at Brand Finance, stated that the record rise in intangible asset value in 2025 highlights “the central role of innovation, intellectual property, and brand equity in shaping corporate market value.”
However, she cautioned that the downturn in sectors like oil and gas illustrates “the vulnerability of overdependence on intangible assets in volatile markets.”
