Saudi Crown Prince: PIF to Establish Five Regional Investment Companies

16 October 2022, Saudi Arabia, Jeddah: Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman attends the opening of the Consultative Assembly of Saudi Arabia meeting in Riyadh. (dpa)
16 October 2022, Saudi Arabia, Jeddah: Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman attends the opening of the Consultative Assembly of Saudi Arabia meeting in Riyadh. (dpa)
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Saudi Crown Prince: PIF to Establish Five Regional Investment Companies

16 October 2022, Saudi Arabia, Jeddah: Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman attends the opening of the Consultative Assembly of Saudi Arabia meeting in Riyadh. (dpa)
16 October 2022, Saudi Arabia, Jeddah: Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman attends the opening of the Consultative Assembly of Saudi Arabia meeting in Riyadh. (dpa)

Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, Prime Minister, Chairman of the Council of Economic and Development Affairs and Chairman of the Public Investment Fund, announced on Wednesday that the Fund will establish five companies aimed at investing in Bahrain, Iraq, Jordan, Oman, and Sudan.

The announcement follows the launch of the Saudi Egyptian Investment Company (SEIC), a wholly owned PIF subsidiary, in August 2022. The six companies aim to invest up to a total of SAR 90 billion (USD 24 billion) in opportunities across various key sectors in each market.

The announcement was made on the second day of the 6th Edition of the Future Investment Initiative (FII), which is being held in Riyadh, with the participation of leading investors, innovators, and world leaders.

The companies will invest in various key sectors, including but not limited to, infrastructure, real estate development, mining, healthcare, financial services, food and agriculture, manufacturing, telecoms, and technology, among other strategic sectors and industries in each country.

The establishment of the five new companies will contribute to an increase in regional investment opportunities for PIF’s portfolio companies and Saudi Arabia’s private sector, bolstering attractive financial returns over the long term, and creating more avenues for strategic economic collaboration with the private sector in the target countries as well as enabling the Saudi private sector.

These investments by PIF align with the Fund’s strategy, which includes seeking new investment opportunities in the Middle East and North Africa to build lasting strategic economic partnerships and achieve sustainable returns, grow PIF’s Assets Under Management, and diversify Saudi Arabia’s sources of revenue, while underscoring the objectives of Vision 2030.



Iran's Rial Hits a Record Low, Battered by Regional Tensions and Energy Crisis

An Iranian trader counts money in Tehran's Grand Bazaar. (Reuters)
An Iranian trader counts money in Tehran's Grand Bazaar. (Reuters)
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Iran's Rial Hits a Record Low, Battered by Regional Tensions and Energy Crisis

An Iranian trader counts money in Tehran's Grand Bazaar. (Reuters)
An Iranian trader counts money in Tehran's Grand Bazaar. (Reuters)

The Iranian rial on Wednesday fell to its lowest level in history, losing more than 10% of value since Donald Trump won the US presidential election in November and signaling new challenges for Tehran as it remains locked in the wars raging in the Middle East.

The rial traded at 777,000 rials to the dollar, traders in Tehran said, down from 703,000 rials on the day Trump won.

Iran’s Central Bank has in the past flooded the market with more hard currencies in an attempt to improve the rate.

In an interview with state television Tuesday night, Central Bank Gov. Mohammad Reza Farzin said that the supply of foreign currency would increase and the exchange rate would be stabilized. He said that $220 million had been injected into the currency market, The AP reported.

The currency plunged as Iran ordered the closure of schools, universities, and government offices on Wednesday due to a worsening energy crisis exacerbated by harsh winter conditions. The crisis follows a summer of blackouts and is now compounded by severe cold, snow and air pollution.

Despite Iran’s vast natural gas and oil reserves, years of underinvestment and sanctions have left the energy sector ill-prepared for seasonal surges, leading to rolling blackouts and gas shortages.

In 2015, during Iran’s nuclear deal with world powers, the rial was at 32,000 to $1. On July 30, the day that Iran’s reformist President Masoud Pezeshkian was sworn in and began his term, the rate was 584,000 to $1.

Trump unilaterally withdrew America from the accord in 2018, sparking years of tensions between the countries that persist today.

Iran’s economy has struggled for years under crippling international sanctions over its rapidly advancing nuclear program, which now enriches uranium at near weapons-grade levels.

Pezeshkian, elected after a helicopter crash killed hard-line President Ebrahim Raisi in May, came to power on a promise to reach a deal to ease Western sanctions.

Tensions still remain high between the nations, 45 years after the 1979 US Embassy takeover and the 444-day hostage crisis that followed. Before the revolution, the rial traded at 70 for $1.