ICD Aims To Finance Saudi NEOM, Red Sea Project

The headquarters of the Islamic Corporation for the Development of the Private Sector in Jeddah. In the framework, CEO Ayman Sejiny. (Photo: Asharq Al-Awsat)
The headquarters of the Islamic Corporation for the Development of the Private Sector in Jeddah. In the framework, CEO Ayman Sejiny. (Photo: Asharq Al-Awsat)
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ICD Aims To Finance Saudi NEOM, Red Sea Project

The headquarters of the Islamic Corporation for the Development of the Private Sector in Jeddah. In the framework, CEO Ayman Sejiny. (Photo: Asharq Al-Awsat)
The headquarters of the Islamic Corporation for the Development of the Private Sector in Jeddah. In the framework, CEO Ayman Sejiny. (Photo: Asharq Al-Awsat)

Ayman Sejiny, CEO of the Islamic Corporation for the Development of the Private Sector (ICD), which is affiliated with the Islamic Bank, said that the corporation was looking to provide financing and credit facilities, including Sukuk, for major Saudi projects such as NEOM and the Red Sea.

In an interview with Asharq Al-Awsat, Sejiny noted that the Saudi government was the largest supporter of the ICD, adding that the Corporation established in partnership with the Public Investment Fund (PIF), the Bidaya real estate finance company - one of the largest real estate finance companies owned by the private sector in the Kingdom.

Dealing with the pandemic

Sejiny stressed that the Islamic Corporation for the Development of the Private Sector responded to the COVID-19 pandemic by developing and implementing a dedicated action plan for the period 2021-2023, focusing mainly on increasing its development effectiveness.

“Even during the pandemic, we continued financing these companies, and we focused on helping them if they needed an increase in financing… At the same time, we were interested in providing sukuk during this period,” he stated.

Financing Major Saudi Projects

Sejiny stated that the Saudi government was the largest supporter of the Islamic Corporation for the Development of the Private Sector.

“The Kingdom has given us opportunities to provide our services within the state, and we have the Bidaya real estate finance company, which is one of the largest real estate financing companies owned by the private sector, in partnership with the Public Investment Fund, and we have also financed hospitals in Saudi Arabia,” he underlined.

The CEO of ICD revealed that the Corporation aims to finance major projects in the Kingdom, especially new projects such as NEOM and the Red Sea

The Members’ Projects

Sejiny explained that the Corporation aims in the future to help member states faster, and to double the amounts of funding provided to them.

“We also have 119 banks in the network… Therefore, we asked them to be present in our own platform – Bridge - to improve communication, knowledge sharing, and investment interactions between financial institutions,” he remarked.



Iran Lawmakers Move to Sack Country’s Economy Minister as Rial Plunges 

A currency dealer counts Iranian rials as the value of the rial drops, in Tehran, Iran, February 9, 2025. Majid Asgaripour/WANA (West Asia News Agency) via Reuters
A currency dealer counts Iranian rials as the value of the rial drops, in Tehran, Iran, February 9, 2025. Majid Asgaripour/WANA (West Asia News Agency) via Reuters
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Iran Lawmakers Move to Sack Country’s Economy Minister as Rial Plunges 

A currency dealer counts Iranian rials as the value of the rial drops, in Tehran, Iran, February 9, 2025. Majid Asgaripour/WANA (West Asia News Agency) via Reuters
A currency dealer counts Iranian rials as the value of the rial drops, in Tehran, Iran, February 9, 2025. Majid Asgaripour/WANA (West Asia News Agency) via Reuters

Iran’s parliament on Wednesday received a motion from lawmakers seeking to dismiss Economy Minister Abdolnaser Hemmati amid a sharp decline in the national currency, the rial.

Under Iranian law, Hemmati must appear before the legislature within 10 days to defend his record in a session that could result in his removal.

Ahmad Naderi, a Tehran MP and member of the parliament’s presiding board, said 91 lawmakers had signed the motion.

The move follows closed-door talks between President Masoud Pezeshkian and Hemmati with MPs over the plunging rial, which has lost nearly half its value since Pezeshkian took office in July.

On the black market, the rial is now trading at more than 900,000 to the US dollar, compared with less than 600,000 in mid-2024.

The slide has accelerated since the fall of Syrian president Bashar al-Assad, a longtime Iranian ally, on December 8.

Decades of US-led sanctions have battered Iran’s economy, with inflation worsening since Washington pulled out of a landmark 2015 nuclear deal in 2018.

US President Donald Trump, who returned to the White House in January, has revived his policy of “maximum pressure” on Iran, further tightening restrictions on the country.

Pezeshkian has vowed to seek a return to the nuclear accord and the lifting of sanctions, but diplomatic efforts have so far to make any headway.

In April 2023, lawmakers dismissed the industry minister Reza Fatemi Amin over soaring car prices.