The firm raised US$67 billion year-to-date and beat earnings estimates across the board
Brookfield is calling the Middle East conflict an opportunity — and putting billions behind the claim.
Bruce Flatt, CEO of parent company Brookfield Corporation, told CNBC's Money Movers the firm is “doubling down” on Gulf investments despite ongoing regional conflict, calling the war a net positive for long-term resilience.
“Always when you find great businesses, great countries, great people, and the market offers you an opportunity to invest when others are not,” Flatt said, “it's always the best opportunity in the world.”
The comments came as Brookfield Asset Management posted a strong first quarter: net income rose to US$586m from US$507m a year earlier, fee-related earnings grew 11 percent to US$772m, and distributable earnings beat analyst estimates at US$0.43 per share, according to Bloomberg.
Revenue climbed to US$1.34bn from US$1.08bn, driven partly by a surge in carried interest income to US$112m from just US$2m the prior year.
Fee-bearing capital grew 12 percent year-over-year to US$614bn.
The firm has raised US$67bn year-to-date — more than half of all capital raised in 2025 — and CEO Connor Teskey told analysts on Friday it expects 2026 to be “a record year for fundraising and not by a little bit.”
Both the private equity and infrastructure flagship funds are on track to be their largest vintages ever, Teskey said.
The private equity flagship has already collected US$6bn toward its first close.
The firm deployed US$34bn and monetised US$8bn in asset sales during the quarter.
Infrastructure highlights included a 20 percent stake in a Florida regulated electric utility and a North American rail operating lease portfolio.
In real estate, Brookfield deployed US$3bn across senior living residences in the US, a prime office asset in Tokyo, and a mixed-use portfolio in Paris.
On AI infrastructure, Flatt described the buildout of data centres and power capacity as constructing the foundational layer of a new economy.
“We're just building the utility systems, the railways, the roads of the economy — the next economy,” he told CNBC, estimating the opportunity at US$6tn to US$10tn.
Brookfield has been in the power business, real estate, and data centres for decades, Flatt said, giving it a “unique set of skills” to serve hyperscalers globally.
Teskey called AI adoption “a very significant tailwind” for the firm, the Wall Street Journal reported.
On credit, Oaktree Capital Management co-CEO Armen Panossian said the business avoided deploying heavily during years of heightened competition and is now watching for entry points.
“We don't think at this moment it's the time to really lean in hard,” Teskey said, “but we are seeing the beginnings of a real opportunity set developing.”
Teskey noted the firm carries “very limited exposure to software” — a sector under pressure from both higher rates and AI-driven obsolescence — and that retail-focused business development companies represent less than 1 percent of fee-bearing capital, Bloomberg reported.
Brookfield is also cementing a position in nuclear energy as electricity demand surges.
The same outlet reported the company agreed this week to form a nuclear power development company with startup The Nuclear Company, focused initially on restarting an abandoned South Carolina project.
The US government committed at least US$80bn last year toward new reactors with Brookfield-backed Westinghouse Electric Co.
After quarter end, the firm began managing roughly US$40bn in assets from UK retirement-services provider Just Group — expected to generate approximately US$100m in annual base fee revenue — and repurchased US$575m in BAM shares year-to-date.
The board declared a quarterly dividend of US$0.5025 per share, payable June 30 to shareholders of record as of May 29.
