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Sovereign Wealth Funds

Sandstone rock formations rise above the Hisma desert, Neom

Aiman Al Mudaifer named permanent CEO of Neom

Neom is to appoint Aiman Al Mudaifer as its permanent chief executive, more than five months after he took on the role of acting CEO. Al Mudaifer has worked for the Public Investment Fund, the $925 billion sovereign wealth fund backing Neom, since 2018. He took over the CEO’s post at Neom, one of the […]

U.S. President Donald Trump's adviser Elon Musk reacts during a rally in support of a conservative state Supreme Court candidate of an April 1 election in Green Bay, Wisconsin, U.S. March 30, 2025. REUTERS/

Gulf investors ‘rewarded’ as Musk’s xAI absorbs X

Gulf co-investors in Elon Musk’s X could benefit from the social media platform’s purchase by xAI, analysts have told AGBI. The deal is expected to help artificial intelligence company xAI train Grok, its AI assistant, to compete in the increasingly competitive generative AI market. Musk’s xAI acquired privately-held X last week in a deal that […]

US treasuries are considered a haven for Gulf investors – and there are few alternatives aside from gold, says one expert

US treasuries could become less of a safe bet for Gulf investors

Economic advisers to President Donald Trump have proposed radical policies that could dim the allure of US government bonds for Gulf sovereign investors. The bonds, commonly known as treasuries, are considered among the lowest-risk investments. Many countries with excess dollars – from trade surpluses with the US or the sale of dollar-denominated goods such as […]

The value of PIF's stake in US electric vehicle maker Lucid has fallen more than $30 billion

The ups and downs of PIF’s US holdings

Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund (PIF) has made some big gains but has also been hit by some substantial losses in listed US companies in the five years since it began publishing its holdings, AGBI analysis shows. Overall, the value of its assets in publicly traded companies in the US has plunged 55 percent from […]

Turkey Wealth Fund owns almost half of Turkish Airlines

UAE banks back Turkey Wealth Fund’s $1.2bn loan

State-backed Turkey Wealth Fund has secured its first loan without a treasury guarantee, backed by UAE-listed banks, a local newspaper reported. The sovereign fund raised €1.1 billion ($1.2 billion) two-year syndicated loan from 20 banks from 12 countries, Daily Sabah reported. The interest rate was set at Euro interbank offered rate, plus 2 percent annually for […]

2JC8E4F A panoramic view of the Kuwait City Skyline

Kuwait endorses 2025-26 budget with bigger deficit

Kuwait has endorsed its budget for the next fiscal year 2025-26 with a higher deficit because of lower expected oil income. An emiri decree published in the official gazette set allocations for ministries and other government offices for the budget which starts on April 1. Spending was put at KD24.5 billion ($80.8 billion) and the […]

M79HAK Professional Broker Consults Stock Exchange Trader at His Workstation. Multi-Ethnic Team at Stock Exchange Office is Busy Selling and Buying Stocks

Gulf investors pile into crypto to hedge against risk

Institutional investors in the Gulf are increasingly turning to cryptocurrencies to better manage their risk. Global currency fluctuation and sustained inflation are encouraging investors to add bitcoin and other digital assets to their portfolios, according to a study by Singapore-based QCP, a digital asset trading company. Notable institutional Gulf investments in crypto so far this […]

AI genetic data

Abu Dhabi tenders AI project to analyse genetic data

The Abu Dhabi government has invited companies to bid for the development of an artificial intelligence system that would help doctors and researchers better interpret genetic data. The project calls for a large language model (LLM), the same type of AI technology that powers tools such as ChatGPT, to be trained on the Abu Dhabi […]

Yasir Al Rumayyan, the governor of PIF at the inaugural LIV Golf Invitational. Some PIF budgets have been cut by as much as 60%

PIF spending cuts slow giga-projects and trigger layoffs

Saudi Arabia’s $925 billion Public Investment Fund (PIF) has ordered deep spending cuts across more than 100 of its companies, slowing projects and triggering layoffs, people familiar with the matter have told AGBI. The sovereign wealth fund at the heart of the government’s economic transformation strategy is mandating a minimum 20 percent reduction in 2025 […]

Mubadala has a 73 percent stake in the planned bourse, to be called the Base Exchange

Mubadala seeks liquidity partners for new Brazil bourse

Mubadala Investment Company, Abu Dhabi’s sovereign wealth fund, is in talks to form a consortium with up to 10 partners providing liquidity for a new stock exchange in Rio de Janeiro, two people familiar with the matter said. In return, those partners would receive equity that would modestly dilute Mubadala’s current 73 percent stake in […]

GEB5P2 Pokemon GO players play Pokemon on their mobile phones in parks in Cardiff, South Wales, UK.

‘Pokémon Go’ maker to sell game division to Scopely

Niantic Labs has said it would sell its video game division to Saudi Arabia-owned Scopely for $3.5 billion as the US augmented reality company shifts focus to geospatial technology after failing to recreate the success of its 2016 smash hit Pokémon Go. The deal, announced on Wednesday, also advances Saudi Arabia’s ambitions to become the “ultimate […]

An older white woman checks a smart meter at home. Mubadala says Calisen has an installed base of 16 million smart meters

Mubadala sells stake in UK smart meter provider Calisen

Abu Dhabi’s sovereign wealth fund Mubadala Investment Company has completed the sale of its indirect stake in Calisen, a UK supplier of energy smart meters. Private equity infrastructure investors EQT and Singaporean sovereign wealth fund GIC will buy Calisen in a deal that values the company at around $5 billion. Mubadala, BlackRock and Goldman Sachs […]

Passengers disembarking from an AirAsia Airbus A320 at Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. The airline has a $225m fundraising target

PIF plans major investment in Malaysia’s AirAsia

Saudi Arabia’s sovereign wealth fund, the Public Investment Fund, is to invest $100 million in Malaysia’s Capital A-owned budget airline AirAsia, Bloomberg News reported on Thursday, citing people familiar with the matter. The Middle East investment forms the majority of AirAsia’s approximately one billion ringgit ($225 million) fundraising target, with the company also in discussions […]

A Neom exhibition. Saudi Arabia is looking for funds for such projects and its PIF has signed an MoU with a credit agency from Italy

PIF signs $3bn deal with Italy’s export credit agency

Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund said on Wednesday it had signed a memorandum of understanding worth $3 billion with Italy’s export credit agency, SACE. The sovereign wealth fund is working to boost finances to fund the country’s giga-projects. “The MoU focuses on providing financing support for co-operation between Italian companies in the private sector and […]

Aramco is facing a projected 30 percent drop in oil dividends

Saudi deficit to rise after $40bn loss in Aramco oil dividends

A projected 30 percent drop in Saudi Aramco’s oil dividends in 2025 is likely to force the government and state-owned Saudi Public Investment Fund to step up borrowing to fund infrastructure and other projects under the kingdom’s Vision 2030 economic and social strategy, analysts say. The world’s largest oil company intends to cut dividends to […]

UK company PwC's non-audit services include mergers and acquisitions, tax advisory, strategy and consulting work

PIF temporarily suspends PwC from advisory work  

Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund (PIF) has temporarily barred UK company PwC from securing advisory and consulting contracts until February 2026, according to a news report. The ban extends to the sovereign wealth fund’s more than 100 subsidiaries, Bloomberg reported citing informed sources. However, auditing projects continue as before. In May 2023, PwC received a license […]

People, Person, Executive

SoftBank CEO admits failing to deliver returns to PIF

Japan’s SoftBank Group has not “fully delivered” the expected returns to Saudi Arabia’s sovereign wealth fund, chaired by Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, CEO Masayoshi Son has said. “I haven’t still given him enough return. I still owe him,” Bloomberg reported, quoting Son at a panel discussion at a conference staged by Saudi Arabia’s FII […]

Workers at a cotton farm in Côte d'Ivoire. Salic will have a call option to buy the remaining 19.99 percent stake in Olam Agri

PIF-owned Salic pays $1.8bn to up stake in Olam Agri

Saudi Agricultural and Livestock Investment Company (Salic) will acquire a 45 percent stake in Olam Agri Holdings for $1.8 billion, the Singapore-based company said in a statement. The transaction values Olam Agri at $4 billion, higher than the $3.5bn put on the company in November last year when Salic, a Public Investment Fund (PIF) subsidiary, […]

Waha Capital's holdings include Orchid, which provides fertility services in the UAE

Waha Capital to expand UAE health business

Abu Dhabi’s Waha Capital, a listed company with $3.2 billion of assets under management, plans to expand its healthcare business in the UAE, and could make acquisitions to do so. The company aims to tap demand from the emirates’ expanding population and visitors from India, its chief financial officer said. Waha is part-owned by Abu […]

Dazn PIF Saudi sports

PIF’s $1bn Dazn deal creates new Mena sports streamer

Surj Sports Investment, a unit of Saudi’s Public Investment Fund (PIF), has acquired a minority stake in UK-based global sports network Dazn.  The deal, believed to be worth $1 billion, will establish new broadcasting joint venture Dazn Mena, which the companies say will broadcast live and on-demand sports from Saudi Arabia. The partnership will also […]