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Knight Dragon Vice-President: Saudi Real Estate Market to Become Fastest Growing in the World

Photo of a recent real estate exhibition in Riyadh (Asharq Al-Awsat)
Photo of a recent real estate exhibition in Riyadh (Asharq Al-Awsat)
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Knight Dragon Vice-President: Saudi Real Estate Market to Become Fastest Growing in the World

Photo of a recent real estate exhibition in Riyadh (Asharq Al-Awsat)
Photo of a recent real estate exhibition in Riyadh (Asharq Al-Awsat)

Knight Dragon Real Estate Development Company has revealed plans to launch its business in Saudi Arabia by opening an office in Riyadh, during the last quarter of 2023.

Sammy Lee, founder and vice chairman of Knight Dragon, said that Saudi Arabia was a fast-growing country with ambitious plans to develop its infrastructure and real estate sector, which will create a huge demand for housing.

In an interview with Asharq Al-Awsat, he stressed that his company’s expertise could help meet this demand, given its proven record of developing successful real estate projects in other countries.

Asked about the added value that Knight Dragon will provide to the Saudi market and the region, he said that large-scale real estate development was complex and involved important factors that should be taken into consideration, such as the country’s young population and the government’s ambitious plans to develop its infrastructure based on the latest technological innovations.

Sammy Lee noted that the company used Blockchain technology to tokenize real estate assets, allowing small investors to participate in the real estate market. He explained that real estate tokenization involved converting the value of real estate into a token, based on Blockchain technology, allowing for digital ownership and transfer.

Moreover, Knight Dragon uses the technology of integrated modular construction, which saves time and money in construction.

The company’s vice-president noted that this technology allows projects to be completed in half the time or less, compared to traditional construction methods.

“Modular prefabricated building units... are shipped to the construction site for assembly. This process eliminates the need for on-site construction, which can save a significant amount of time,” he told Asharq Al-Awsat.

He continued: “In addition to saving time, the integrated modular building technology can also save money. This is because prefabricated units are often less expensive than materials that are purchased and transported to a construction site. In addition, the units can be built to exact specifications, which can reduce waste and improve efficiency.”

Sammy Lee stressed that the Middle East, especially Saudi Arabia, was the right place to expand the company’s business.

He pointed to the Kingdom’s rich potential, ambitious vision and major investments in infrastructure and development.

“Real estate constitutes a very important part of the Saudi economy, and reports indicate that the goal is to increase the sector’s contribution to the gross domestic product to 10 percent by 2030, as the Kingdom’s economy continues to diversify,” he remarked.

The vice-president of Knight Dragon said that youth in Saudi Arabia was a major driver of growth. With more than 30 million people under the age of 25, there is a huge demand for housing and other real estate, he emphasized.

He also noted that the Kingdom was the right place for real estate developers, thanks to the rapid growth of the real estate market, in addition to the availability of many investment opportunities.

Sammy Lee said that he was excited about the potential of new technologies, such as Blockchain and integrated modular construction, to revolutionize the real estate industry.

“I believe that these technologies can make the development and management of real estate assets easier and more efficient,” he underlined.

He added that estimates indicate that the population of Saudi Arabia was expected to grow from 6.8 million to 15-20 million by 2030, which would lead to an increase in demand for workplaces and housing units.

Thus, Sammy Lee expected the Saudi real estate market to be the fastest growing in the world in the next five to ten years, and said: “This is a wonderful opportunity for investors and developers, and I am excited to be a part of it.”

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Business

IMF and Arab Monetary Fund Sign MoU to Enhance Cooperation

The MoU was signed by IMF Managing Director Dr. Kristalina Georgieva and AMF Director General Dr. Fahad Alturki - SPA
The MoU was signed by IMF Managing Director Dr. Kristalina Georgieva and AMF Director General Dr. Fahad Alturki - SPA
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IMF and Arab Monetary Fund Sign MoU to Enhance Cooperation

The MoU was signed by IMF Managing Director Dr. Kristalina Georgieva and AMF Director General Dr. Fahad Alturki - SPA
The MoU was signed by IMF Managing Director Dr. Kristalina Georgieva and AMF Director General Dr. Fahad Alturki - SPA

The International Monetary Fund (IMF) and the Arab Monetary Fund (AMF) signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) on the sidelines of the AlUla Conference on Emerging Market Economies (EME) to enhance cooperation between the two institutions.

The MoU was signed by IMF Managing Director Dr. Kristalina Georgieva and AMF Director General Dr. Fahad Alturki, SPA reported.

The agreement aims to strengthen coordination in economic and financial policy areas, including surveillance and lending activities, data and analytical exchange, capacity building, and the provision of technical assistance, in support of regional financial and economic stability.

Both sides affirmed that the MoU represents an important step toward deepening their strategic partnership and strengthening the regional financial safety net, serving member countries and enhancing their ability to address economic challenges.

Business

Saudi Chambers Federation Announces First Saudi-Kuwaiti Business Council

File photo of the Saudi flag/AAWSAT
File photo of the Saudi flag/AAWSAT
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Saudi Chambers Federation Announces First Saudi-Kuwaiti Business Council

File photo of the Saudi flag/AAWSAT
File photo of the Saudi flag/AAWSAT

The Federation of Saudi Chambers announced the formation of the first joint Saudi-Kuwaiti Business Council for its inaugural term (1447–1451 AH) and the election of Salman bin Hassan Al-Oqayel as its chairman.

Al-Oqayel said the council’s formation marks a pivotal milestone in economic relations between Saudi Arabia and Kuwait, reflecting a practical approach to enabling the business sectors in both countries to capitalize on promising investment opportunities and strengthen bilateral trade and investment partnerships, SPA reported.

He noted that trade between Saudi Arabia and Kuwait reached approximately SAR9.5 billion by the end of November 2025, including SAR8 billion in Saudi exports and SAR1.5 billion in Kuwaiti imports.

Business

Leading Harvard Trade Economist Says Saudi Arabia Holds Key to Success in Fragmented Global Economy

Professor Pol Antràs speaks during a panel discussion at the AlUla Conference for Emerging Market Economies (Asharq Al-Awsat).
Professor Pol Antràs speaks during a panel discussion at the AlUla Conference for Emerging Market Economies (Asharq Al-Awsat).
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Leading Harvard Trade Economist Says Saudi Arabia Holds Key to Success in Fragmented Global Economy

Professor Pol Antràs speaks during a panel discussion at the AlUla Conference for Emerging Market Economies (Asharq Al-Awsat).
Professor Pol Antràs speaks during a panel discussion at the AlUla Conference for Emerging Market Economies (Asharq Al-Awsat).

Harvard University economics professor Pol Antràs said Saudi Arabia represents an exceptional model in the shifting global trade landscape, differing fundamentally from traditional emerging-market frameworks. He also stressed that globalization has not ended but has instead re-formed into what he describes as fragmented integration.

Speaking to Asharq Al-Awsat on the sidelines of the AlUla Conference for Emerging Market Economies, Antràs said Saudi Arabia’s Vision-driven structural reforms position the Kingdom to benefit from the ongoing phase of fragmented integration, adding that the country’s strategic focus on logistics transformation and artificial intelligence constitutes a key engine for sustainable growth that extends beyond the volatility of global crises.

Antràs, the Robert G. Ory Professor of Economics at Harvard University, is one of the leading contemporary theorists of international trade. His research, which reshaped understanding of global value chains, focuses on how firms organize cross-border production and how regulation and technological change influence global trade flows and corporate decision-making.

He said conventional classifications of economies often obscure important structural differences, noting that the term emerging markets groups together countries with widely divergent industrial bases. Economies that depend heavily on manufacturing exports rely critically on market access and trade integration and therefore face stronger competitive pressures from Chinese exports that are increasingly shifting toward alternative markets.

Saudi Arabia, by contrast, exports extensively while facing limited direct competition from China in its primary export commodity, a situation that creates a strategic opportunity. The current environment allows the Kingdom to obtain imports from China at lower cost and access a broader range of goods that previously flowed largely toward the United States market.

Addressing how emerging economies should respond to dumping pressures and rising competition, Antràs said countries should minimize protectionist tendencies and instead position themselves as committed participants in the multilateral trading system, allowing foreign producers to access domestic markets while encouraging domestic firms to expand internationally.

He noted that although Chinese dumping presents concerns for countries with manufacturing sectors that compete directly with Chinese production, the risk is lower for Saudi Arabia because it does not maintain a large manufacturing base that overlaps directly with Chinese exports. Lower-cost imports could benefit Saudi consumers, while targeted policy tools such as credit programs, subsidies, and support for firms seeking to redesign and upgrade business models represent more effective responses than broad protectionist measures.

Globalization has not ended

Antràs said globalization continues but through more complex structures, with trade agreements increasingly negotiated through diverse arrangements rather than relying primarily on multilateral negotiations. Trade deals will continue to be concluded, but they are likely to become more complex, with uncertainty remaining a defining feature of the global trading environment.

Interest rates and artificial intelligence

According to Antràs, high global interest rates, combined with the additional risk premiums faced by emerging markets, are constraining investment, particularly in sectors that require export financing, capital expenditure, and continuous quality upgrading.

However, he noted that elevated interest rates partly reflect expectations of stronger long-term growth driven by artificial intelligence and broader technological transformation.

He also said if those growth expectations materialize, productivity gains could enable small and medium-sized enterprises to forecast demand more accurately and identify previously untapped markets, partially offsetting the negative effects of higher borrowing costs.

Employment concerns and the role of government

The Harvard professor warned that labor markets face a dual challenge stemming from intensified Chinese export competition and accelerating job automation driven by artificial intelligence, developments that could lead to significant disruptions, particularly among younger workers. He said governments must adopt proactive strategies requiring substantial fiscal resources to mitigate near-term labor-market shocks.

According to Antràs, productivity growth remains the central condition for success: if new technologies deliver the anticipated productivity gains, governments will gain the fiscal space needed to compensate affected groups and retrain the workforce, achieving a balance between addressing short-term disruptions and investing in long-term strategic gains.