NEOM Closes $3 Billion Financing Facilities to Support Development of Its Projects

Oxagon, NEOM's reimagined industrial city on the Red Sea. (NEOM)
Oxagon, NEOM's reimagined industrial city on the Red Sea. (NEOM)
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NEOM Closes $3 Billion Financing Facilities to Support Development of Its Projects

Oxagon, NEOM's reimagined industrial city on the Red Sea. (NEOM)
Oxagon, NEOM's reimagined industrial city on the Red Sea. (NEOM)

NEOM secured on Monday a landmark financing agreement with Italy’s SACE, securing approximately $3 billion under a long-term multicurrency untied facility.

With this move, NEOM aims to support the development of its major projects and regions, according to a statement issued by the company.

The deal marks NEOM's first corporate export credit agency (ECA) financing and the largest untied financing ever guaranteed by SACE.

It will support various projects across NEOM and is backed by a syndicate of nine prominent international banks – HSBC, Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria, Bank of China, Crédit Agricole CIB, Agricultural Bank of China, Citi, China Construction Bank, J.P. Morgan and Bank of America.

The partnership will enable NEOM to leverage supplies from Italian businesses, particularly SMEs, to support the project’s development across key sectors, such as infrastructure, urban development, construction and transport (rail, road and maritime).

To date, Italian suppliers and contractors have supported NEOM on a range of projects, with contracts worth $6.3 billion, and the deal aims to further strengthen and develop these important international business relationships, NEOM said in a statement.

“NEOM is committed to working with global partners who share our passion for visionary projects and initiatives that will advance human progress,” said NEOM Acting CEO Eng. Aiman Al-Mudaifer.

He said this deal advances the Kingdom's aim of generating capital investment in line with Saudi Vision 2030, with foreign investment being instrumental in diversifying the economy.

“This partnership with SACE and the consortium of leading international banks also creates strong ties with major Italian companies that will enhance international trade and investment flows,” Al-Mudaifer said.

SACE CEO Alessandra Ricci said: “We are glad to play our part alongside NEOM in this cutting-edge project, which generates opportunities in a wide range of sectors for Italian SMEs and supply chains.”

She noted that opening new routes to “Made in Italy” is a priority to allow a long-term growth for Italian exports, matching their potential.

“Our Riyadh office supports Italian companies and their potential partners and counterparties, by providing experience and insurance financial solutions combined with the added value of a physical presence in the area,” Ricci added.

Meanwhile, the SACE untied facility will expand and diversify NEOM’s existing funding pool, supporting its long-term financing requirements as NEOM moves forward in the development of major projects and regions.



Russian Central Bank Head Warns of Turbulent Times ahead Despite Slowing Inflation

Russia's Central Bank Governor Elvira Nabiullina attends a session of the St. Petersburg International Economic Forum (SPIEF) in Saint Petersburg, Russia, June 20, 2025. REUTERS/Anton Vaganov/File Photo
Russia's Central Bank Governor Elvira Nabiullina attends a session of the St. Petersburg International Economic Forum (SPIEF) in Saint Petersburg, Russia, June 20, 2025. REUTERS/Anton Vaganov/File Photo
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Russian Central Bank Head Warns of Turbulent Times ahead Despite Slowing Inflation

Russia's Central Bank Governor Elvira Nabiullina attends a session of the St. Petersburg International Economic Forum (SPIEF) in Saint Petersburg, Russia, June 20, 2025. REUTERS/Anton Vaganov/File Photo
Russia's Central Bank Governor Elvira Nabiullina attends a session of the St. Petersburg International Economic Forum (SPIEF) in Saint Petersburg, Russia, June 20, 2025. REUTERS/Anton Vaganov/File Photo

The Russian economy has adapted to Western sanctions and inflation is now slowing, but turbulent times and major technological shifts lie ahead, central bank governor Elvira Nabiullina said on Wednesday.

Despite the sanctions, the Russian economy grew by 4.3% last year but is set to slow sharply in 2025, with many officials and economists saying that the current model has exhausted its growth potential.

"We have adapted to some external challenges (but) no, we are facing very turbulent times ahead," said Nabiullina, who is widely credited with steering the Russian economy through the Ukraine military conflict and resulting sanctions.

"But I am confident that this also presents new opportunities for development and for increasing labor productivity in conditions of expensive labor. We base our efforts on this," she told a banking conference.

She stressed that the high cost of labor - spurred by the military spending that has led to a wage growth spiral in many sectors, as well as by curbs on immigration - would remain for a long time, Reuters reported.

Nabiullina said the economy should in future rely entirely on domestic sources of financing as cheap funding from abroad, abundant before the Ukraine conflict, is no longer available.

"In my view, structural adaptation to external constraints has been completed. We have demonstrated our ability to adapt to these challenges, but now we are facing structural shifts of an entirely new kind, primarily technological ones," she said.

"They may have even more far-reaching consequences than what we experienced over the past two years," Nabiullina said, mentioning artificial intelligence applications in the economy as one such challenge.

INFLATION SLOWING

The central bank, which has faced heavy criticism over its tight monetary policy, began cutting its key interest rate last month as prices started to come down, helped by the rouble's strength.

Nabiullina said inflation is now slowing faster than the central bank expected, and there are signs of easing in the severity of labor market shortages.

She said that if economic indicators pointed to a more significant slowdown than anticipated, the central bank would have room for bolder interest rate cuts. She dismissed statements by critics of the bank, who want deeper cuts, that the cooling of the economy was excessive.

Nabiullina also rejected statements from many businessman and bankers that the rouble is now overvalued and should weaken to please exporting companies, which saw their revenues shrink as the rouble rallied by over 40% against the dollar this year.

"A weak exchange rate is often a sign of vulnerability, a result of chronically high inflation and a lack of confidence in one’s own currency. It is hardly something to strive for," she said.