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WeBook to Boost Saudi Entertainment Sector Profits

People are seen at Boulevard Riyadh City. (Asharq Al-Awsat)
People are seen at Boulevard Riyadh City. (Asharq Al-Awsat)
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WeBook to Boost Saudi Entertainment Sector Profits

People are seen at Boulevard Riyadh City. (Asharq Al-Awsat)
People are seen at Boulevard Riyadh City. (Asharq Al-Awsat)

Saudi Arabia’s General Entertainment Authority (GEA) plans to double WeBook’s revenues, the official ticketing platform for Riyadh Season, by adding new features.

These include exclusive live streaming of events and concerts. The goal is to boost profits, diversify income sources, and benefit the Saudi economy.

Turki Al-Sheikh, GEA Chairman, also revealed plans to list WeBook on the Saudi Stock Exchange, with expectations for it to become a billion-dollar company.

WeBook has already achieved impressive results, with ticket sales exceeding SAR 1 billion ($266.6 million) and over 11 million tickets sold. It has 5 million users from more than 160 countries.

During Riyadh Season, WeBook became the most downloaded app, with over 5 million downloads, giving access to more than 520 global events.

At a press conference on Wednesday for the upcoming Riyadh Season, Al-Sheikh announced that all events will be exclusively streamed on the WeBook platform. There will be two viewing options: a free version with ads and a subscription-based option without ads.

He also introduced a new feature allowing viewers to interact with artists during live concerts. Users will be able to vote for their favorite songs through the platform, enabling direct engagement between fans and performers.

WeBook’s new subscription options offer various packages tailored to user preferences and access to exclusive, limited-edition products. Subscribers can also join live discussions and bid on unique experiences and rare items.

The platform has enhanced the ticket-buying process with features like waitlists, improved resale options, a loyalty program, and faster payments via Apple Pay.

WeBook is working with authorities to fight ticket fraud, creating a team dedicated to this issue.

They have canceled over 18,000 counterfeit tickets and shut down eight black market sites. The platform has also banned over 5,000 accounts and monitored more than 3 million transactions.

In the past year, WeBook generated over SAR 45 million ($12 million) in revenue, served more than 65,500 users, and facilitated over 100,000 resales.

Additionally, WeBook has signed a deal with the Saudi Pro League to be the exclusive ticket platform for the next three seasons, starting in 2024-2025, allowing for early ticket sales.

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Business

SpaceX Leveraged Fund Providers Hit by Day-one Launch Setback, Sources Say

The SpaceX logo and a rising stock graph in this illustration, taken June 11, 2026. REUTERS/Dado Ruvic/Illustration
The SpaceX logo and a rising stock graph in this illustration, taken June 11, 2026. REUTERS/Dado Ruvic/Illustration
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SpaceX Leveraged Fund Providers Hit by Day-one Launch Setback, Sources Say

The SpaceX logo and a rising stock graph in this illustration, taken June 11, 2026. REUTERS/Dado Ruvic/Illustration
The SpaceX logo and a rising stock graph in this illustration, taken June 11, 2026. REUTERS/Dado Ruvic/Illustration

Asset managers eager to roll out leveraged exchange-traded funds tied to SpaceX on its first trading day have been told to delay the launch until Monday, four sources familiar with the matter said.

The setback denies speculators and traders a chance to capture what many expect could be a strong first-day pop in the shares of the blockbuster IPO, while managers will have to wait for the influx of capital into their products, Reuters said.

"We had really wanted to be out on Friday," said Matt Markiewicz, head ‌of product and ‌capital markets at Tradr ETFs, declining to comment on the ‌delay. ⁠The firm's 2x ⁠long and 2x short ETFs will now debut Monday on Cboe Global Markets .

"There is a lot at stake; these products could end up holding a total of more than $10 billion" in assets, Markiewicz added.

Asset managers seeking SEC approval to launch the ETFs had hoped to trade in lockstep with SpaceX's market debut, several of the issuers said.

Instead, exchanges told them on Wednesday the listings would need to be pushed to the first trading day following ⁠the IPO, according to four sources. The exchanges cited SEC concerns ‌that coupling the ETF launches with leveraged products could complicate ‌the SpaceX debut, three sources said.

The SEC did not respond to requests for comment. ‌A spokesman for the Nasdaq Stock Market, which will be home to the SpaceX IPO ‌as well as some of the ETFs, declined comment. Cboe Global Markets and the New York Stock Exchange could not immediately be reached for comment.

While there is no precedent for leveraged funds - introduced in the US less than four years ago and surging in number over the past ‌12 months - to launch alongside an underlying stock, asset managers had hoped to gain an edge in what analysts say could be ⁠a multibillion-dollar race ⁠for assets in the first weeks of trading.

"There are billions at stake in the first few weeks alone," said Todd Sohn, an ETF analyst at Strategas.

Major players in the leveraged stock arena, including Direxion, GraniteShares, ProShares and Defiance, plan to roll out 2x leveraged long ETFs as soon as they are permitted to do so, according to their filings and advertisements on investment forums and social media sites.

"Investors will have multiple options; they will be able to get SpaceX exposure because of early entry on the part of passive index providers, or through the stock itself, or through the leveraged (ETF) ecosystem, which adds up to a pretty robust mechanism for price discovery," said Simeon Hyman, global investment strategist at ProShares.

He said his firm had no plans to launch early and was comfortable waiting until Monday. "The intent of everybody is to have this (IPO) work smoothly."

Business

Türkiye Central Bank Commits to Continued Disinflation Path

A man carries goods on his shoulder on a hot day in Istanbul, Wednesday, June 3, 2026. (AP)
A man carries goods on his shoulder on a hot day in Istanbul, Wednesday, June 3, 2026. (AP)
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Türkiye Central Bank Commits to Continued Disinflation Path

A man carries goods on his shoulder on a hot day in Istanbul, Wednesday, June 3, 2026. (AP)
A man carries goods on his shoulder on a hot day in Istanbul, Wednesday, June 3, 2026. (AP)

Turkish Central Bank Governor Fatih Karahan said on Friday that price stability remains the top priority and that the disinflation process will continue despite recent ‌geopolitical tensions.

The ‌governor said ‌policy ⁠tools and strong ⁠reserves provide the means to sustain disinflation, and that a rebalancing in domestic demand is ⁠expected to continue ‌supporting ‌the process.

Governor said ‌the central bank ‌will continue to monitor all factors affecting the inflation outlook.

Loan ‌growth is moving toward a more ⁠balanced ⁠path, the governor said, citing the latest policy measures.

Strong reserves alongside policy tools act as buffers against geopolitical risks to disinflation.

Business

Dollar Steadies as Traders Weigh Prospects for Iran Ceasefire

A US $100 dollar bill is seen on December 17, 2009. (Reuters)
A US $100 dollar bill is seen on December 17, 2009. (Reuters)
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Dollar Steadies as Traders Weigh Prospects for Iran Ceasefire

A US $100 dollar bill is seen on December 17, 2009. (Reuters)
A US $100 dollar bill is seen on December 17, 2009. (Reuters)

The dollar found its footing on Friday after sliding the previous day as traders waited for confirmation that a ceasefire deal in the Middle East could be imminent.

The euro bounced around and was last very slightly higher at $1.158, near its strongest in a week after the European Central Bank's first interest rate hike in three years on Thursday.

The US dollar was up 0.1% against Japan's currency at 160 yen, keeping it around a key level at which traders tend to get nervous about intervention from Tokyo.

The British pound fell very slightly to $1.341. Data showing the economy contracted in April appeared to have little impact, with the focus on Iran ‌talks.

US President Donald ‌Trump said on Thursday the United States and Iran could ‌sign ⁠a peace deal ⁠as soon as this weekend that would reopen the Strait of Hormuz to shipping. Brent crude slid 3.6% to $87 a barrel on Friday.

Iran's semi-official Mehr news agency said on Friday the memorandum, which contained US commitments to lifting sanctions and its naval blockade, required finalization by the relevant authorities.

Yet analysts and investors sounded a skeptical note, saying potential breakthroughs have previously failed to materialize.

"There's a question around the hopes of a deal, ⁠and questions around whether it will be met and agreed upon ‌by Iran and the United States," said Michael ‌Wan, senior currency analyst at Mitsubishi UFJ Financial Group in Singapore.

"It sounds like it's quite ‌close, but they're not exactly at the finish line."

The US dollar index, which ‌measures the greenback's strength against a basket of six currencies, was flat at 99.68 after slumping to its weakest in a week on Thursday.

Investors have flocked to the safe-haven dollar when tension in the Iran war has flared, and sold it to buy stocks when peace talks ‌have appeared to make progress.

"For today, the market will again be headline-driven. Will Vice President JD Vance be getting ⁠on a plane ⁠to Europe to sign some kind of agreement?" asked Chris Turner, global head of markets at ING.

"And more importantly, will we receive confirmation from Iran that it is happy with a deal and will also be sending a delegation to Europe this weekend? Expect the dollar to be bounced around."

Data on Thursday showed US producer prices increased more than expected in May, ahead of Kevin Warsh's first rate-setting meeting as chair of the Federal Reserve next week.

Traders expect the Fed to keep rates steady at 3.5% to 3.75%but see a more than 50% chance that it raises them by the end of the year, with pricing pulled slightly lower on Thursday by Trump's comments about a potential deal.

In cryptocurrencies, bitcoin was up 0.1% at $63,430 but down 13% for the month so far.