Floating Kingdom
Prince Alwaleed bin Talal al-Saud is used to making headlines. His forays into the world's capital markets through his investment vehicle, Kingdom Holding Company, are usually significant, and his success in picking stocks over the past three decades has made him one of the richest men on earth with, he says, a net worth of about $20,000 million.
With significant holdings in some of the world's most powerful companies including Citigroup, where it is the biggest shareholder, News Corporation, Apple, Four Seasons, Disney, PepsiCo and eBay, Kingdom Holding has a global presence. Alwaleed is now set to create one of the biggest splashes of his career.
Speaking exclusively to MEED in his Riyadh office, Alwaleed revealed that in the next few weeks he will float Kingdom Holding on the Saudi Arabian stock exchange. The news that one of the world's leading private investment houses is to be listed on the Tadawul is important for the bourse and for Saudi Arabia, significantly raising Riyadh's profile as a regional, rather than merely national, financial centre. 'The objective is to be a publicly traded company in Saudi Arabia before the end of this quarter,' Alwaleed says.
The listing will go a long way towards restoring confidence in the bourse, which is struggling to recover from a 14-month-long correction that caused it to lose about 60 per cent of its value between December 2005 and February 2007. The IPO is sure to attract interest from retail and institutional investors globally, as well as in the kingdom.
By listing in Riyadh, Alwaleed is not only giving local investors the opportunity to buy into some of the world's biggest companies, but is also sending a powerful message to the outside world. 'It is an eye-opener for all the world to think, ‘wow that company is in Riyadh',' he says.
The symbols of Kingdom Holding's global presence are displayed in Alwaleed's office. In the lobby are rows of photographs of him meeting political and business leaders such as US President George Bush and Microsoft founder Bill Gates. On a table are dozens of honours given to the prince as a result of charitable donations by his Kingdom Foundation - an estimated $2,500 million during the past decade.
Filling the wall behind his desk are the logos of hundreds of major brands in which he has an interest. It is a visual Who's Who of global business at the start of the 21st Century, and underlines the significance of Kingdom Holding's listing in Riyadh.
'This company in downtown Riyadh is the biggest shareholder in Citigroup,' he says. 'It is in partnership with Bill Gates to own the Four Seasons. It is the owner of the best hotel in the world - Georges V in Paris. It is the second biggest holder in media in the world, after Rupert Murdoch. It is the second biggest shareholder in Canary Wharf - the biggest real estate development in London. It is the second biggest shareholder in Disneyland Paris after Walt Disney. And it is the majority owner of the biggest and best hotel brand in the Far East, Raffles in Singapore.' The list goes on.
Alwaleed declined to give details of the share sale, citing a confidentiality agreement with the Capital Markets Authority (CMA). However, there has been speculation for some time that he is seeking to sell about 30 per cent of the company. This would raise several billion dollars that could be steered towards new investments, such as two mega real estate developments planned in Jeddah and Riyadh, worth about $20,000 million. Citigroup and Samba Financial Group are working on structuring the sale.
The complexity of the deal has delayed the sale, initially targeted for late 2006. Discussions have covered the thorny issue of opening the offering to non-nationals. At present, international investors cannot buy directly on the Tadawul, although they can access the market through funds. And although Ki
Prince Alwaleed bin Talal al-Saud is used to making headlines. His forays into the world's capital markets through his investment vehicle, Kingdom Holding Company, are usually significant, and his success in picking stocks over the past three decades has made him one of the richest men on earth with, he says, a net worth of about $20,000 million.
With significant holdings in some of the world's most powerful companies including Citigroup, where it is the biggest shareholder, News Corporation, Apple, Four Seasons, Disney, PepsiCo and eBay, Kingdom Holding has a global presence. Alwaleed is now set to create one of the biggest splashes of his career. Speaking exclusively to MEED in his Riyadh office, Alwaleed revealed that in the next few weeks he will float Kingdom Holding on the Saudi Arabian stock exchange. The news that one of the world's leading private investment houses is to be listed on the Tadawul is important for the bourse and for Saudi Arabia, significantly raising Riyadh's profile as a regional, rather than merely national, financial centre. 'The objective is to be a publicly traded company in Saudi Arabia before the end of this quarter,' Alwaleed says. The listing will go a long way towards restoring confidence in the bourse, which is struggling to recover from a 14-month-long correction that caused it to lose about 60 per cent of its value between December 2005 and February 2007. The IPO is sure to attract interest from retail and institutional investors globally, as well as in the kingdom. By listing in Riyadh, Alwaleed is not only giving local investors the opportunity to buy into some of the world's biggest companies, but is also sending a powerful message to the outside world. 'It is an eye-opener for all the world to think, ‘wow that company is in Riyadh',' he says. The symbols of Kingdom Holding's global presence are displayed in Alwaleed's office. In the lobby are rows of photographs of him meeting political and business leaders such as US President George Bush and Microsoft founder Bill Gates. On a table are dozens of honours given to the prince as a result of charitable donations by his Kingdom Foundation - an estimated $2,500 million during the past decade. Filling the wall behind his desk are the logos of hundreds of major brands in which he has an interest. It is a visual Who's Who of global business at the start of the 21st Century, and underlines the significance of Kingdom Holding's listing in Riyadh. 'This company in downtown Riyadh is the biggest shareholder in Citigroup,' he says. 'It is in partnership with Bill Gates to own the Four Seasons. It is the owner of the best hotel in the world - Georges V in Paris. It is the second biggest holder in media in the world, after Rupert Murdoch. It is the second biggest shareholder in Canary Wharf - the biggest real estate development in London. It is the second biggest shareholder in Disneyland Paris after Walt Disney. And it is the majority owner of the biggest and best hotel brand in the Far East, Raffles in Singapore.' The list goes on. Alwaleed declined to give details of the share sale, citing a confidentiality agreement with the Capital Markets Authority (CMA). However, there has been speculation for some time that he is seeking to sell about 30 per cent of the company. This would raise several billion dollars that could be steered towards new investments, such as two mega real estate developments planned in Jeddah and Riyadh, worth about $20,000 million. Citigroup and Samba Financial Group are working on structuring the sale. The complexity of the deal has delayed the sale, initially targeted for late 2006. Discussions have covered the thorny issue of opening the offering to non-nationals. At present, international investors cannot buy directly on the Tadawul, although they can access the market through funds. And although KiThis content is only available to full MEED package subscribers (MEED magazine and MEED.com).
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