Last year, BlackRock landed a $5 billion investment pledge from Riyadh. Months later a group led by Brookfield Asset Management Ltd. invested in Dubai-based Gems Education, one of the world’s largest private education providers, betting on a sector that’s benefited from an influx of expats; Bloomberg News previously estimated the deal at about $2 billion. Financial firms have continued to expand in the region too. KKR & Co. recently appointed retired US Army General David Petraeus as chairman of its Middle East franchise and is setting up a local investment team.