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Al-Tassan to Asharq Al-Awsat: Major Int’l Companies Are Interested in Entering Tadawul

Saud Al-Tassan, CEO of EFG Hermes Saudi Arabia (Asharq Al-Awsat)
Saud Al-Tassan, CEO of EFG Hermes Saudi Arabia (Asharq Al-Awsat)
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Al-Tassan to Asharq Al-Awsat: Major Int’l Companies Are Interested in Entering Tadawul

Saud Al-Tassan, CEO of EFG Hermes Saudi Arabia (Asharq Al-Awsat)
Saud Al-Tassan, CEO of EFG Hermes Saudi Arabia (Asharq Al-Awsat)

Saud Al-Tassan, CEO of EFG Hermes Saudi Arabia, revealed that major international companies, including BlackRock and Franklin Templeton, are showing great interest in entering the Saudi financial market (Tadawul).

He stressed that the Public Investment Fund (PIF), through its acquisition of local companies, plays “a major positive role in raising the quality in all sectors, which made investors aspire to a larger stock market.”

Al-Tassan was speaking in an interview with Asharq Al-Awsat, on the sidelines of the EFG Hermes Saudi Forum, which was held on Monday and Tuesday in London, under the theme, “Looking for Sustainable Growth.”

The event was attended by 370 participants, including investors, businessmen and representatives of more than 50 Saudi joint stock companies, in addition to the Chairman of the Board of Directors of the Saudi Capital Market Authority, Mohammed bin Abdullah Al-Kuwaiz, and the Executive Director of the Saudi Tadawul, Mohammed Al-Rumaih.

Al-Tassan said that the outcome of the forum was “very positive,” pointing to the great cooperation between Tadawul and Saudi Hermes, which managed the IPOs of major companies, including Aramco, ACWA Power and Americana in the Saudi market.

Asked about the challenges facing foreign investors in the Saudi financial market, the CEO of EFG Hermes Saudi Arabia pointed to the percentage allocated to foreigners, which is approximately 15 percent, noting that in some markets in the world, foreign investors’ share exceeded 50 percent.

“The reason for this is the strong internal demand for the Saudi financial market. This is very important, but with time we hope to see an increase in the permitted percentages of foreign investments,” he told Asharq Al-Awsat.

Al-Tassan stressed that this matter would not prevent the achievement of the Saudi financial market’s ambition to become one of the five largest global markets, saying that Tadawul was now among the 10 largest markets in the world.

“[Tadawul] was very far from this rank when Vision 2030 was announced in 2016; therefore we are optimistic that it will become among the top 5 markets by 2030, and may surpass this rank,” he remarked.

Regarding the sectors that will constitute the engine of this growth, he said: “We expect all sectors to achieve growth, especially since we, in Saudi Arabia, have all the ingredients to become one of the largest competitors at the global level.”

Al-Tassan continued: “We are here [in London] not because of oil. Oil has been in Saudi Arabia for a long time. What has changed now, under the guidance of the wise leadership, is that the focus has become on non-oil sectors. Oil helped us reach this stage, but we are optimistic about other sectors that have had a significant impact on the Saudi market.”

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Business

Syrian Central Bank Allows Dealings With Global Electronic Payment Companies

Key benefits include allowing Syrians entering the country to use their international bank cards domestically (X).
Key benefits include allowing Syrians entering the country to use their international bank cards domestically (X).
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Syrian Central Bank Allows Dealings With Global Electronic Payment Companies

Key benefits include allowing Syrians entering the country to use their international bank cards domestically (X).
Key benefits include allowing Syrians entering the country to use their international bank cards domestically (X).

The Central Bank of Syria on Monday issued a decision allowing banks and local electronic payment companies to work with global electronic payment companies such as Visa and Mastercard, in a move seen as a step toward modernizing financial infrastructure and expanding digital inclusion.

Central Bank Governor Abdulkader Husrieh said in a statement the decision marks a strategic shift toward a more advanced digital economy and will help facilitate money transfers and payment transactions for Syrians both inside the country and abroad.

He added that the move opens the door to a new phase in the development of electronic payment systems and strengthens Syria’s integration into the global financial system after years of reliance on limited, traditional tools.

Husrieh said the decision enables banks and local electronic payment providers to broaden their services with more advanced and secure payment solutions for individuals and businesses.

Key benefits include allowing Syrians entering the country to use their international bank cards domestically, enabling wider use of Syrian-issued cards abroad, expanding the adoption of electronic payments, reducing reliance on cash, improving user experience, supporting e-commerce and startups, and enhancing the security and reliability of financial transactions.

The governor added that cooperation with global electronic payment companies will help transfer expertise and modern technologies to the local market, improving the efficiency and competitiveness of the financial sector.

The central bank said it continues to implement a package of reforms aimed at rebuilding financial institutions and strengthening monetary policy tools, alongside upgrading electronic payment systems and expanding the digitalization of banking services, in a bid to restore international financial connectivity and create a more efficient and transparent environment to support economic recovery.

Business

Gold Eases as Inflation Jitters, Iran War Cloud US Rate Outlook

AFP: A photo shows gold bangles and necklaces for sale at a gold shop at the Grand Baazar in Istanbul
AFP: A photo shows gold bangles and necklaces for sale at a gold shop at the Grand Baazar in Istanbul
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Gold Eases as Inflation Jitters, Iran War Cloud US Rate Outlook

AFP: A photo shows gold bangles and necklaces for sale at a gold shop at the Grand Baazar in Istanbul
AFP: A photo shows gold bangles and necklaces for sale at a gold shop at the Grand Baazar in Istanbul

Gold prices nudged lower in thin trade on Monday, weighed down by inflation worries that clouded the US monetary policy outlook, while markets awaited developments in US-Iran peace negotiations.

Spot gold was down 0.5% at $4,588.71 per ounce, as of 0655 GMT. US gold futures for June delivery fell 0.9% to $4,600.60.

Markets in China, Japan and the UK are closed for holidays.

Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell closed out eight years as head of the US central bank last Wednesday with interest rates on hold and rising concern about inflation, Reuters reported.

"Gold is still feeling the lingering effects of last week's hawkish Fed messaging, particularly the notable dissenting voices pushing back against further easing," said Tim Waterer, chief market analyst at KCM Trade.

Federal Reserve officials, who dissented against the policy statement last week, said the oil price shock from the Iran war means the US Fed should be clear it can no longer lean towards interest rate cuts, with a rise in borrowing costs possible in the future.

Increasing oil prices could encourage central banks to hold interest rates higher for longer, which would pressure non-yielding assets such as gold.

Oil prices eased but held above $100 a barrel, with the lack of clarity around a potential US-Iran peace deal remaining in focus.

President Donald Trump said the United States would start helping to free ships stranded in the Gulf by the US-Israeli war on Iran from Monday, as a tanker reported being hit by unknown projectiles in the Strait of Hormuz.

Iranian state media reported that Washington conveyed its response to Iran's 14-point proposal via Pakistan, and that Tehran was now reviewing it.

"We see gold largely trading in a $4,400-$5,500 range by year-end. The upper end of that range would require a durable reduction in Middle East tensions and some easing of inflation pressures, while persistent high oil prices would keep the metal toward the lower half of the range," Waterer added.

Spot silver fell 0.6% to $74.91 per ounce, platinum held steady at $1,989, and palladium was down 0.4% at $1,519.78.

Business

Global LNG Exports Fall to Two-Year Low

Maritime tracking data indicates that global LNG shipments decreased to 33 million tons last month (X)
Maritime tracking data indicates that global LNG shipments decreased to 33 million tons last month (X)
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Global LNG Exports Fall to Two-Year Low

Maritime tracking data indicates that global LNG shipments decreased to 33 million tons last month (X)
Maritime tracking data indicates that global LNG shipments decreased to 33 million tons last month (X)

Global exports of liquefied natural gas fell to the lowest in almost two years in April, as the war in the Middle East disrupted flows of the super-chilled fuel through the Strait of Hormuz, Bloomberg reported.

Shipments declined to about 33 million tons, the lowest level since May 2024, according to ship-tracking data compiled by Bloomberg.

The drop came after Qatar — the second-largest exporter last year — halted production following strikes on the world’s biggest plant by Iran in March, with the damage set to take years to repair.

Despite the ceasefire in the war with Iran, the Strait of Hormuz, through which about one-fifth of the world's oil and LNG supplies pass, remains closed. Since the start of the conflict, only one LNG tanker has transited the strait.

Nevertheless, lost volumes have been partially offset by new production elsewhere in the world. According to ship-tracking data compiled by Bloomberg, April shipments were down only 7 percent from the previous year, suggesting that increased output from suppliers, including the United States and Canada, has partially compensated for the reduced volumes from Qatar.

In the United States, the massive Golden Pass LNG terminal shipped its first cargo last month. Qatar also delivered some volumes to Kuwait, which can export them without transiting the Strait.