Tech $5bn Neom data centre latest deal announced at Leap Saudi Arabia’s $500 billion futuristic giga-project Neom has signed a $5 billion deal to develop what it claims will be the world’s first fully sustainable data centre. The agreement was signed with the Saudi IT and technology company DataVolt. The data centre will be located at Oxagon, with the first phase having a capacity of […] February 11, 2025
Finance Tabby hires three global banks for Saudi listing Tabby, the buy-now-pay-later startup backed by Abu Dhabi sovereign wealth fund Mubadala, has appointed three global banks to oversee its potential initial public offering (IPO) on the Saudi stock exchange. The company has brought in HSBC Holdings, JPMorgan Chase. and Morgan Stanley to finalise the flotation process, Bloomberg reported, citing informed sources. The plans are still in the early […] February 11, 2025
People & Lifestyle Banksy and Magritte fetch millions at first Saudi art auction Saudi Arabia’s first-ever international commercial art auction, staged by troubled Abu Dhabi-backed Sotheby’s over the weekend, raised more than $17 million in sales of works by Arab and international artists, and of luxury goods and sports memorabilia. Banksy’s Subject to Availability – from his series of vandalized oils – and René Magritte’s L’État de Veille each […] February 10, 2025
Tech Deals worth $15bn on day one of Saudi Leap tech event Investment deals worth almost $15 billion have been announced on the first day of the Leap 25 tech event in Riyadh. The Saudi communications ministry said that deals signed on day one of the four-day event, which ends on Wednesday, totalled $14.9 billion. The deals included plans for a manufacturing plant in the Saudi capital […] February 10, 2025
Analysis Business of Sport PIF backs $5bn NBA rival basketball league Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund is planning to back a new $5 billion basketball competition in Europe and Asia that’s expected to rival the US’s National Basketball Association (NBA), according to media reports. The unnamed tournament will feature six men’s and six women’s teams playing in eight host cities in Europe and Asia. The competition […] February 10, 2025
Opinion Telecoms Gulf telcos should ignore Europe’s fading allure For all their foreign forays – current and historic – it is their domestic businesses that matter most February 10, 2025
Banking and Finance Ma’aden’s $1bn sukuk nine times over-subscribed Saudi state-owned mining company Ma’aden has sold $1.25 billion of dollar-denominated sukuk to help finance a $12 billion expansion plan. The sale was more than nine times oversubscribed, the company said. The sale, which closed on Sunday, “marks a key milestone in Ma’aden’s ambitious 2040 strategy to secure essential minerals and transform mining into the […] February 10, 2025
Markets IPO for Saudi poultry producer Entaj off to a flying start The initial public offering (IPO) of Saudi Arabian poultry producer Entaj is already oversubscribed, barely 24 hours after the book-building exercise began. Starting the exercise on Sunday and pricing the shares at between SAR46 and SAR50 each, the books were covered “within hours”, CEO Raja Alharbi told AGBI. The IPO could raise more than SAR450 […] February 10, 2025
Video length: 04:42 VIDEO Banking and Finance Why KBW Ventures is focusing its funds closer to home Saudi investor Prince Khaled bin Alwaleed’s KBW Ventures has invested 90 percent of its funds in US companies such as Colossal Biosciences, but now it is keen to invest closer to home, its chief investment officer tells AGBI. CIO Ekta Tolani says KBW Ventures now wants to invest at least 30 percent of its funds […] February 10, 2025
Transport Private sector vital to meet Gulf EV charging station demand Demand for charging stations for electric vehicles in the UAE, Saudi Arabia and other Gulf states is expected to surge this year and beyond as regional governments set ambitious greenhouse gas emission targets and sales of EVs pick up. Saudi Arabia, for instance, has fewer than 300 charging stations, but is committed to building 5,000 […] February 10, 2025
Opinion Leisure & Hospitality Sotheby’s first Saudi auction: a test of Gulf’s market potential The 150 lots will feature everything from Picasso to Hermès handbags, at prices up to $1.5m February 7, 2025
Agriculture Poultry firm Balady to boost Saudi output by 200m chicks a year Saudi Arabia’s Balady Poultry Company is to invest SAR1.14 billion ($303 million) over five years to expand its business. The plans involve establishing two hatcheries with a combined capacity of 200 million chicks a year. In a statement to the Saudi stock exchange, Balady said it aims to establish a facility with the capacity to […] February 7, 2025
Manufacturing Ceer strikes $145m deal with Sabelt for EV sports seats Ceer, Saudi Arabia’s first electric vehicle (EV) brand, has struck a SAR543 million ($145 million) deal with Italy’s Sabelt to develop sports seats for its upcoming flagship E sedan and SUV models. The drivers will get the same seats as those in high-performance sports cars. Sabelt will create high-performance seats for Ceer, ensuring maximum protection, […] February 7, 2025
Analysis Mining Canada’s Barrick seeks to tap $2trn of Saudi minerals A year ago Saudi Arabia almost doubled the estimated value of its mineral resources, from $1.3 trillion to $2.5 trillion, primarily on higher prices for strategic minerals. Now the country has the fastest-growing mining sector in the world, mining minister Bandar Alkhorayef said, speaking at an investment conference in Riyadh last month. Production rates are […] February 6, 2025
Oil & Gas Aramco raises prices as demand from Asia grows Saudi Aramco, the world’s leading oil exporter, has sharply increased crude prices for March shipments to buyers in Asia. Demand from China and India is rising as US sanctions disrupt Russian supply. Aramco raised the official selling price for flagship Arab Light crude by $2.40 to $3.90 per barrel above the Oman/Dubai benchmark average, Saudi […] February 6, 2025
Banking and Finance GCC needs common policy on crypto, says Saudi academic Saudi Arabia and other Gulf Arab states should develop aligned policies and regulations around the potential use of cryptocurrencies as a payment tool, a prominent Saudi academic and economist has said. While the largest Arab economy generally forbids the use of cryptocurrencies, the UAE has put some policies in place to regulate their use. “Saudi […] February 5, 2025
Economy Cash withdrawals in Saudi Arabia rise for first time in 5 years Cash withdrawals in Saudi Arabia in 2024 increased for the first time in five years, helping to underpin a rise in consumer spending, the local advisory company Jadwa Investment has reported. Consumer spending in the largest Arab economy rose by nearly 7.5 percent for the year and the value of point of sale (POS) transactions […] February 4, 2025
Economy Saudi non-oil conditions hit 10-year high Business activity and sentiment in Saudi Arabia’s non-oil sector has reached its highest level in over a decade. Saudi Arabia’s Purchasing Managers’ Index (PMI) score hit 60.5 in January, up from 58.4 in December – its highest since September 2014. The pace of input price inflation at Saudi non-oil companies in January was the second-fastest […] February 4, 2025
Analysis Business of Sport Saudi football spending takes youthful turn as big names depart It says much for the evolution of football in Saudi Arabia that the main talking points of the winter transfer-window were of individuals leaving the league rather than multi-million dollar signings. The majority of headlines in the last week of January were devoted to the departures of Brazilian forward Neymar, effectively having his contract ripped […] February 4, 2025
Leisure & Hospitality Abu Dhabi’s Modon plans to buy UK events company Modon Holding has announced plans to acquire a global events company. Modon, an investment company that is backed by state-owned Abu Dhabi Developmental Holding Company (ADQ), announced on Monday that it plans to complete the acquisition of Theta Bidco, a limited company registered in London that owns 100 percent of Arena Events Group (AEG). The […] February 4, 2025
