عربي English Türkçe اردو فارسى
Logo
Latest News
Business

Saudi Arabia's Venture Capital Grows Over Half a Billion

Saudi Arabia supports the event industry and attracts significant exhibitions and conferences (Asharq Al-Awsat)
Saudi Arabia supports the event industry and attracts significant exhibitions and conferences (Asharq Al-Awsat)
TT
TT

Saudi Arabia's Venture Capital Grows Over Half a Billion

Saudi Arabia supports the event industry and attracts significant exhibitions and conferences (Asharq Al-Awsat)
Saudi Arabia supports the event industry and attracts significant exhibitions and conferences (Asharq Al-Awsat)

Saudi Arabia finished H1 of 2022 with three consecutive half-year periods of growth in venture capital (VC) funding after observing a 244 percent year-on-year increase in funding compared to H1 of 2021.

The venture capital market saw a record funding of $548 million.

A report issued by the MAGNiTT platform, sponsored by Saudi Venture Capital (SVC), stated that Saudi Arabia saw a record half-year in funding, surpassing FY 2021 by eight percent, despite closing only 55 percent of total transactions.

The Kingdom advanced to second place among the Middle East and North African countries in terms of the number of deals, with 79 deals, observing a 36 percent growth compared to the first half of 2021.

Saudi Arabia maintained its position as the second largest market, attracting venture capital among regional countries during the first half.

With a new record of 88 active investors, the Saudi market welcomed 12 percent more investors in H1 2022, as the number of investors increased 126 percent compared to the same period last year when 42 percent of investors were from outside the Kingdom.

SVC CEO and Board Member Nabeel Koshak stated that the establishment of SVC "directly contributed to the development of the VC ecosystem" in Saudi Arabia by stimulating investment in funds and co-investment in start-ups with angel investor groups and fund managers.

"The Kingdom has achieved record growth in venture investment over the past few years, and within the framework of the Kingdom's Vision 2030, many new initiatives have been launched recently to stimulate venture investment," he said.

Meanwhile, the Saudi General Authority for Exhibitions and Conferences revealed that over 4,000 exhibitions and conferences were held in the Kingdom in H1 of 2022.

The Authority developed procedures for issuing licenses to hold exhibitions and conferences out of its role to enable the growth of the business tourism sector in strengthening the national economy and contributing to the non-oil gross domestic product.

The Authority's issuance of licenses to hold exhibitions and conferences in all regions of the Kingdom during the first half of 2022 jumped by 367 percent, with more than 4,000 exhibitions and conferences, compared to the same period last year.

The Authority is constantly working on building strategic partnerships with the relevant authorities to enable the sector's growth through the continuous development of the legislation regulating the industry.

The Authority's acting CEO, Amjad Shaker, underscored the importance of building strategic partnerships.

He said: "We are constantly working with the relevant authorities to develop procedures and legislation to contribute to organizing and motivating the sector to attract exhibitions and conferences, which will contribute to enhancing Saudi Arabia's competitiveness in the business tourism industry, in addition to creating many job opportunities in several fields to support the national economy."

Most Viewed

 
 
Business

Saudi Minister Says AIIB Success Measured by Development Impact, Not Financing

Saudi Finance Minister Mohammed al-Jadaan at the 11th annual meeting of the Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank’s Board of Governors (X)
Saudi Finance Minister Mohammed al-Jadaan at the 11th annual meeting of the Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank’s Board of Governors (X)
TT
TT

Saudi Minister Says AIIB Success Measured by Development Impact, Not Financing

Saudi Finance Minister Mohammed al-Jadaan at the 11th annual meeting of the Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank’s Board of Governors (X)
Saudi Finance Minister Mohammed al-Jadaan at the 11th annual meeting of the Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank’s Board of Governors (X)

Saudi Finance Minister Mohammed al-Jadaan urged the Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank to judge its success by the impact of its projects, saying financing volumes and approvals alone do not show whether the bank is improving services, strengthening institutions, or building economic resilience.

Speaking at the 11th annual meeting of the bank’s Board of Governors, which concluded on Tuesday in Doha, al-Jadaan said the AIIB had built strong foundations in its early years.

Progress on regional connectivity, cooperation and private-sector participation had strengthened its ability to meet member countries’ infrastructure needs, he said.

As the bank expands, progress “should not be measured by financing volumes or project approvals alone, but by development impact,” he said.

Success should mean “better infrastructure services, stronger institutions, greater economic resilience and broader private-sector participation,” al-Jadaan said, as the bank enters its second decade and seeks to expand infrastructure financing and mobilize more private capital.

He called for earlier engagement with member countries to better understand their circumstances, infrastructure gaps and priorities, and for multiyear programs aligned with national strategies.

Al-Jadaan also urged the bank to broaden partnerships with multilateral development banks and international organizations to share expertise, avoid duplicating efforts and mobilize more public and private resources.

He said the bank should remain guided by member countries’ needs, taking account of differences in institutional capacity, fiscal space and levels of infrastructure development.

The Doha meeting, held under the theme “Future Infrastructure: Impact and Innovation,” comes as the bank prepares for a new phase of expansion.

The AIIB has said it aims to nearly double annual financing to about $20 billion by 2030, focusing on infrastructure linked to climate resilience, renewable energy, digital transformation and regional connectivity, while mobilizing more private capital.

Saudi Arabia is a founding member of the AIIB, a multilateral development finance institution established in Beijing in 2016.

Business

African Leaders to Gather in Egypt for Business Summit

Friday's forum is expected to bring together more than 20 heads of state and government representatives in the Mediterranean city of Alamein, alongside business leaders, bankers and development institutions. © KHALED DESOUKI / AFP/File
Friday's forum is expected to bring together more than 20 heads of state and government representatives in the Mediterranean city of Alamein, alongside business leaders, bankers and development institutions. © KHALED DESOUKI / AFP/File
TT
TT

African Leaders to Gather in Egypt for Business Summit

Friday's forum is expected to bring together more than 20 heads of state and government representatives in the Mediterranean city of Alamein, alongside business leaders, bankers and development institutions. © KHALED DESOUKI / AFP/File
Friday's forum is expected to bring together more than 20 heads of state and government representatives in the Mediterranean city of Alamein, alongside business leaders, bankers and development institutions. © KHALED DESOUKI / AFP/File

African leaders will meet in Egypt on Friday for a business summit that Cairo hopes will bolster its clout across the continent.

Friday's forum is expected to bring together more than 20 heads of state and government representatives in the Mediterranean city of Alamein, alongside business leaders, bankers and development institutions.

"This is an African platform," Egypt's deputy foreign minister for African affairs Mohamed Abu Bakr Saleh told AFP.

"A country in East Africa should be able to sign an agreement with a country in West, North or southern Africa through this platform."

Saleh said the forum would become a biennial event under an African Union mandate, focusing on infrastructure, trade, agriculture, healthcare, mining, technology and renewable energy.

Officials estimate Egyptian investments across Africa at around $14 billion. Among Egypt's flagship ventures is Tanzania's $3 billion Julius Nyerere Hydropower Project, built by a consortium led by Egyptian companies.

Yet trade within Africa remains limited, totalling just $192 billion in 2023 and only accounting for around 15 percent of the continent's total trade, compared with more than 55 percent in Asia and over 70 percent in Europe.

Africa also attracted about $70 billion in foreign direct investment in 2025, a fraction of the roughly $1.6 trillion invested globally, according to the UN.

"Africa possesses vast resources, but they are still not being exploited to the level we would like to see," Saleh said.

The gathering also takes place against the backdrop of an unresolved dispute between Egypt and Ethiopia over the $5 billion GERD, Africa's largest hydroelectric project.

Ethiopia says the dam, inaugurated last year, is vital for economic growth, while Egypt says it could threaten Nile water supplies without a binding operating agreement.

More than a decade of negotiations have failed to yield a settlement.

"Our position on Egypt's water security has not changed and will not change," Saleh said. "It is an existential issue for Egypt."

Business

US Ban on $1 Billion Worth of Canadian Imports Goes into Effect

Shipping containers in the Port of Montreal, Canada (Reuters)
Shipping containers in the Port of Montreal, Canada (Reuters)
TT
TT

US Ban on $1 Billion Worth of Canadian Imports Goes into Effect

Shipping containers in the Port of Montreal, Canada (Reuters)
Shipping containers in the Port of Montreal, Canada (Reuters)

US-Canada relations, already tense, are likely to deteriorate further after the United States went ahead early Tuesday with a decision to ban nearly $1 billion worth of Canadian imports, including dairy products and motorcycles.

The ban amounts to barely a ripple in $880 billion worth of a two-way annual trade between the two northern neighbors. But it marks another ratcheting up of President Donald Trump’s second-term trade war with America’s longtime ally and trading partner.

The import ban “certainly won't do anything to help the trade tensions between the United States and Canada,'' said trade attorney Patrick Childress, a partner at Holland & Knight and a former US trade official.

The latest sparring began over the summer when Trump reached back to a Great Depression law to impose 50% tariffs on about $20 billion worth of Canadian imports, charging that Canada discriminates against US dairy and auto producers. Canada promptly counterpunched with tariffs of 15% and 25%, matching US imports dollar for dollar.

To punish Canada for retaliating against his tariffs, Trump decided to ban a list of Canadian products, effective 12:01 a.m. Eastern time Tuesday.

The economic impact is likely to be minimal. Childress noted that the products on the banned list were already facing Trump’s tariffs. “For a lot of these goods, the 50% was already acting as a de facto ban by making importation from Canada into the United States uneconomical,″ he said.

Jacob Jensen, director of trade policy at the center-right American Action Forum think tank, calculates that the ban would cover $967 million worth of Canadian imports, based on 2025 numbers.

“This marks yet another escalation in the trade war that may result in further retaliation on the Canadian side,” Jensen said. He expects Canadian exporters and US importers “impacted by these bans will be highly motivated’’ to demand that trade officials on both sides find some way to reach a “resolution of this whole ordeal.’’