Riyadh, Saudi Arabia: East36 Capital founder Shabab Haider has held discussions with family-office managers and investment professionals in Saudi Arabia as digital assets increasingly enter conversations around institutional and alternative investment strategies.
Haider, founder of New York-based investment and digital asset advisory firm East36 Capital, participated in the Family Office Annual Investment Meeting held in Riyadh on September 2, 2026.
The invitation-focused gathering brought together family offices, institutional and private investors, entrepreneurs and other participants in the private-capital sector to discuss capital deployment, strategic partnerships and emerging investment opportunities.
During the meeting, Haider focused on a question increasingly facing family offices worldwide: whether digital assets should remain outside conventional portfolios or whether carefully researched exposure to the sector could form part of a broader alternative investment strategy.
The discussions come as the global cryptocurrency market capitalization stands at around $3 trillion, increasing the relevance of digital assets for institutional and sophisticated investors.
“The conversation around crypto has fundamentally changed,” Haider said. “This is no longer simply a discussion about Bitcoin or speculative trading. Family offices are increasingly looking at the broader digital-asset ecosystem, including established cryptocurrencies, blockchain infrastructure, digital-asset companies and the businesses building the financial architecture of the next generation.”
From speculation to strategic allocation
East36 Capital argues that investing in digital assets should not simply be viewed as a bet on rising cryptocurrency prices.
Instead, the firm advocates an investment process based on technical intelligence, fundamental research, risk management, portfolio construction and disciplined capital allocation.
“We believe the biggest mistake an investor can make in digital assets is confusing market excitement with investment intelligence,” Haider said.
“The objective is not to chase whatever asset is rising the fastest. It is to understand the technology, market structure, liquidity, fundamentals, catalysts and risks, and then determine whether an opportunity deserves capital.”
For family offices, the digital-asset sector now extends considerably beyond individual cryptocurrencies. The broader ecosystem includes blockchain infrastructure, decentralized finance, stablecoins, tokenization, digital-asset exchanges, custody technology and companies developing financial services and applications on blockchain networks.
East36 Capital believes these areas warrant closer consideration as investors assess the next generation of alternative investment opportunities.
Rather than treating cryptocurrencies as a single asset category with identical characteristics, the firm evaluates opportunities individually, considering factors such as underlying fundamentals, market conditions, technological development, adoption, liquidity, valuation and risk.
Gulf investors explore digital asset opportunities
Saudi Arabia and the wider Gulf are playing an increasingly prominent role in international capital markets, while Riyadh continues to strengthen its position as a regional hub for investment, entrepreneurship and financial innovation.
The Family Office Annual Investment Meeting provided a platform for family offices, private investors, institutional allocators and entrepreneurs to exchange views on investment strategies, capital deployment and potential partnerships.
Haider’s participation forms part of East36 Capital’s efforts to develop relationships with investors across the Middle East and connect them with opportunities emerging from the global digital economy.
“The Gulf has some of the world’s most sophisticated and forward-looking pools of private capital,” Haider said. “We believe there is a significant opportunity to create a more informed dialogue between Middle Eastern family offices and the global digital-asset ecosystem.”
Research and risk management take priority
East36 Capital maintains that digital-asset investments should be assessed with the same level of discipline applied to other sophisticated investment categories.
The firm encourages investors to consider the underlying asset or business, the reasons for making an investment, appropriate allocation levels, potential risks that could undermine the investment thesis and the position’s role within the wider portfolio.
As the digital-asset industry develops, East36 Capital expects institutional-quality research, due diligence and risk management to become increasingly important for investors seeking exposure to the sector.
About East36 Capital
East36 Capital, Inc. is a New York-based investment and digital asset consulting firm that provides research-driven perspectives on cryptocurrencies, digital assets, blockchain-related businesses and emerging opportunities across the digital economy.
The firm’s investment philosophy emphasizes research, market intelligence, disciplined capital allocation and risk awareness rather than speculation or short-term market trends.
