عربي English Türkçe اردو فارسى
Logo
Latest News
Business

BNY Mellon to Begin Delivering Global Securities Services in Saudi Arabia

SNB Capital has partnered with global investments company BNY Mellon to offer global securities services to institutional and large asset owners in Saudi Arabia. (Asharq Al-Awsat)
SNB Capital has partnered with global investments company BNY Mellon to offer global securities services to institutional and large asset owners in Saudi Arabia. (Asharq Al-Awsat)
TT
TT

BNY Mellon to Begin Delivering Global Securities Services in Saudi Arabia

SNB Capital has partnered with global investments company BNY Mellon to offer global securities services to institutional and large asset owners in Saudi Arabia. (Asharq Al-Awsat)
SNB Capital has partnered with global investments company BNY Mellon to offer global securities services to institutional and large asset owners in Saudi Arabia. (Asharq Al-Awsat)

SNB Capital, the investment banking arm of Saudi National Bank, has partnered with global investments company BNY Mellon to offer global securities services to institutional and large asset owners in Saudi Arabia.

This builds on an earlier announcement in October 2020 in which NCB Capital (now SNB Capital following the merger with Samba Capital) announced its entry into an alliance with BNY Mellon.

The alliance was developed to address the demand to adopt global best practices of segregated asset management, brokerage, and custody functions following the launch of the Kingdom’s Independent Custody Model in 2017.

“This will contribute to the growth and development of the Kingdom’s capital markets, and the financial sector as a whole, in line with Vision 2030,” Loai Bafaqeeh, managing director of the securities division at SNB Capital, said.

“Our collaboration with BNY Mellon will also enable us to offer clients market-leading custody and consolidated reporting solutions, all while complying with the relevant cybersecurity regulations,” Bafaqeeh added.

Head of the Middle East and Africa at BNY Mellon Anthony Habis said: “SNB Capital’s local expertise, combined with our global capabilities, capitalizes on the growing opportunity for asset services in the Kingdom and supports the development of its financial infrastructure and banking sector.”

BNY Mellon has $45 trillion assets under custody and/or administration and works with a wide range of sovereign wealth funds, financial institutions, governments, and other clients throughout the region, offering asset servicing and ancillary services, corporate trust, and treasury services.

In the Middle East, BNY Mellon has an office in Saudi Arabia, a branch office in the Dubai International Finance Center, and representative offices in the Abu Dhabi Global Market, Cairo, and Istanbul.

SNB Capital is the Securities, Asset Management, and Investment Banking arm of Saudi National Bank.

SNB Capital’s market leadership is evidenced by its position as Saudi Arabia’s largest custodian settling 22 percent of trades on Tadawul in Q4 2020.

It is the Kingdom’s largest asset manager with $57 billion in assets under management as of June 2021.

Most Viewed

 
 
Business

UK Economy Grows as Expected before Iran War Impact

FILE PHOTO: The London skyline is seen with the financial district in the background, in London, Britain, March 25, 2026. REUTERS/Isabel Infantes/File Photo
FILE PHOTO: The London skyline is seen with the financial district in the background, in London, Britain, March 25, 2026. REUTERS/Isabel Infantes/File Photo
TT
TT

UK Economy Grows as Expected before Iran War Impact

FILE PHOTO: The London skyline is seen with the financial district in the background, in London, Britain, March 25, 2026. REUTERS/Isabel Infantes/File Photo
FILE PHOTO: The London skyline is seen with the financial district in the background, in London, Britain, March 25, 2026. REUTERS/Isabel Infantes/File Photo

Britain's economy grew robustly in the first quarter of 2026, official data confirmed on Tuesday, but households were squeezed even before the worst effects of the US-Iran conflict started to feed through.

Economic output grew by 0.6% in the first three months of the year, unchanged from an initial estimate by the Office for National Statistics.

"Services were the main driver of growth in the latest quarter, with strengths in computer programming, wholesale and advertising only offset by falls in rental companies and recruitment agencies," ⁠Liz McKeown, director ⁠of economic statistics at the ONS, said.

It marked the third year running of conspicuously strong growth in the first quarter — and some economists have raised concerns with the statistics office's seasonal adjustment processes.

According to Reuters, the ONS reiterated on Tuesday that a review had found no statistically significant seasonality, although it was monitoring it closely.

Business surveys and economic growth data for April suggest Britain's likely next prime minister to replace ⁠Keir Starmer, Andy Burnham, will face a tougher inheritance.

"Alongside softer household spending, tighter financial conditions and economic uncertainty will weigh on investment," said Matt Swannell, chief economic adviser to the EY ITEM Club, a consultancy.

"Even though the government will soon be under new leadership, fiscal policy is likely to remain tight in the near term."

The ONS revised growth in the final three months of 2025 down to 0.1%.

Output in 2025 as a whole was also slightly lower than previously thought at 1.3%, compared with a previous estimate of 1.4%.

Sterling showed little reaction to the data.

Real household disposable income per head, a measure of living standards that the Labour government aims to ⁠raise by the end ⁠of the parliamentary term, contracted by 0.8% in the first quarter, after a 1.2% rise at the end of 2025.

Households put less money aside in the first quarter with the savings ratio decreasing by 0.7 percentage points to 8.9%, driven by a fall in the contribution of non-pension saving.

The squeeze on households looks set to continue as the Bank of England held interest rates at 3.75% in June and investors are pricing in the first quarter-point increase by February 2027.

Britain's budget watchdog in March forecast the economy to expand 1.1%, although the projections were made before the Iran war started.

Compared with a year earlier, GDP was 0.9% higher, the ONS said, revised down from a previous estimate of 1.1%, while output on a per capita basis was 0.7% higher than the year before.

Business

Shell Expects 65% Rise in Global LNG Demand by 2050

FILE PHOTO: Shell logo and stock graph are seen through a magnifier displayed in this illustration taken September 4, 2022. REUTERS/Dado Ruvic/Illustration/File Photo
FILE PHOTO: Shell logo and stock graph are seen through a magnifier displayed in this illustration taken September 4, 2022. REUTERS/Dado Ruvic/Illustration/File Photo
TT
TT

Shell Expects 65% Rise in Global LNG Demand by 2050

FILE PHOTO: Shell logo and stock graph are seen through a magnifier displayed in this illustration taken September 4, 2022. REUTERS/Dado Ruvic/Illustration/File Photo
FILE PHOTO: Shell logo and stock graph are seen through a magnifier displayed in this illustration taken September 4, 2022. REUTERS/Dado Ruvic/Illustration/File Photo

Global liquefied natural gas demand is expected to rise by around 65% by 2050, driven largely by Asia as countries seek lower-emission alternatives to coal and data centers boost power demand, Shell said in an annual report on Tuesday.

Global demand is likely to reach nearly 700 million metric tons a year by that date, the world's largest trader of the superchilled fuel said in its 2026 LNG Outlook.

LNG trade, which reached 422 million tons in 2025, had been set to increase in 2026, it added.

However, severe disruption to shipping through the Strait of Hormuz has shut in around one-fifth of global monthly LNG ⁠supply since the ⁠Middle East conflict began.

As a result, global LNG trade in 2026 could be similar to last year's level if shipping through the strait returns to normal this summer, before returning to growth in 2027, Reuters quoted Shell as saying.

"The conflict created a system-wide shock with disruption cascading across all segments of the economy, but the LNG industry has proved resilient and able to adapt to changing market conditions," Cederic Cremers, Shell's president of integrated gas, said in the report.

The company said recent ⁠growth in LNG supply and regasification infrastructure had improved market resilience and helped limit the impact of the disruption to shipping through Hormuz.

In addition, the ramp-up of new liquefaction facilities in North America, improved performance at existing plants and slower Asian LNG imports have helped offset reduced supply from the Middle East.

Although Asian LNG spot prices rose above $20 per million British thermal units at the peak of the Middle East crisis, they remained well below levels seen in 2022 following Russia's invasion of Ukraine, reflecting greater resilience in the LNG market, Shell said.

About 180 million tons per year of new LNG supply is forecast to enter the market by 2030, improving the availability and affordability of gas and opening up demand ⁠in new markets.

Forecasts ⁠show South and Southeast Asia will account for around 40% of global LNG imports by 2050 as countries seek lower-emission alternatives to coal to meet rapidly growing energy demand.

In more mature Asian markets such as Japan, data centers are emerging as a new source of power demand, the report said.

LNG will also continue to play a key role in European energy security and help balance intermittent renewable power generation as domestic gas production declines, Shell said.

To meet rising demand, significant additional investment will be needed in new LNG export projects through the 2030s and 2040s, with around 200 million tons per year of new liquefaction capacity required in addition to projects already under construction.

"While more investment in both supply and demand infrastructure is needed, the long-term outlook remains strong and LNG will continue to be a stabilizing force in the global energy system," Cremers said.

Business

Saudi Arabia Emerges as Global AI Hub as Tech Firms Base Regional Operations in Riyadh

The SAS pavilion at the Global AI Show in Riyadh. (Asharq Al-Awsat)
The SAS pavilion at the Global AI Show in Riyadh. (Asharq Al-Awsat)
TT
TT

Saudi Arabia Emerges as Global AI Hub as Tech Firms Base Regional Operations in Riyadh

The SAS pavilion at the Global AI Show in Riyadh. (Asharq Al-Awsat)
The SAS pavilion at the Global AI Show in Riyadh. (Asharq Al-Awsat)

Saudi Arabia is no longer preparing for the age of artificial intelligence; it is helping shape it. After designating 2026 as the Year of AI, the Kingdom has evolved from a promising market into a major technology hub, attracting global companies eager to establish regional operations.

Reflecting that momentum, US data and AI company SAS selected Riyadh as its regional headquarters for the Middle East and North Africa a year ago. Founded in 1976, SAS is marking its 50th anniversary this year and is among the world’s leading providers of predictive analytics, data management, and machine learning solutions, serving industries including energy, finance, and healthcare.

Speaking to Asharq Al-Awsat on the sidelines of the Global AI Show, held in Riyadh on June 29-30, Khaled Moussa, Senior Customer Account Manager at SAS, said Saudi Arabia’s Vision 2030 has accelerated the adoption of advanced and sophisticated technologies.

He noted that the Kingdom’s modern digital infrastructure has enabled increasingly complex technological operations, fueling demand for SAS solutions and those of other technology firms across multiple sectors.

“The remarkable growth taking place in Saudi Arabia is attracting significant attention in the United States and beyond,” Moussa said. “That has encouraged international companies to make serious commitments to the market because of its rapid adoption of intelligent technologies.”

Although SAS has operated in Saudi Arabia since 1984, he added, “the market has reached a new level of maturity, both in terms of regulation and technology adoption.”

Moussa said SAS maintains a strong presence across several strategic sectors, particularly energy, through its collaboration with Saudi Aramco, the world’s largest energy company.

The company also works with the Saudi Electricity Company, providing advanced forecasting tools to predict electricity demand and support long-term planning, helping improve operational efficiency and future preparedness. SAS also supplies analytical solutions for the water sector to strengthen sustainability efforts.

Moussa highlighted two areas where predictive analytics deliver particular value. The first is market forecasting, where SAS helps organizations anticipate trends and make data-driven decisions while reducing unnecessary costs. The second is predictive maintenance, which allows industrial operators to identify potential equipment failures before they occur, minimizing downtime and avoiding costly repairs.

He also underlined SAS’s long-term commitment to developing Saudi talent. The company partners directly with universities to offer six-month paid internships, equipping students with practical experience before they enter the workforce.

In addition, SAS extends its training initiatives to schools and universities, teaching students how to apply AI technologies and preparing them for future careers.

The Global AI Show brought together more than 100 experts and global leaders from 80 countries, including government officials, innovators, and digital transformation specialists.

The event attracted more than 10,000 participants, 100 exhibitors and sponsors, and coverage from 200 international media organizations, reinforcing Riyadh’s growing role as a global platform for AI policymaking and international technology cooperation.