Capital Markets
Recent and ongoing reforms of Saudi Arabia’s capital markets have seen the Kingdom gradually liberalise its investment framework and overhaul the operations of the Saudi Stock Exchange (Tadawul) – the largest exchange in the GCC by market capitalisation. Looking to initial public offerings, the state’s privatisation programme – a central component of Saudi Vision 2030 – is likely to generate further activity over the medium term. Targeted sectors include the environment, water and agriculture, transport, energy, housing, education and health. However, the timetable of the privatisation programme, as well as the movement of the Tadawul’s main index, is likely to be adversely impacted by the Covid-19 outbreak that is expected to upend global markets far into 2020. This chapter contains interviews with Khalid Al Hussan, CEO, Saudi Stock Exchange (Tadawul); and Rajiv Shukla, CEO, HSBC Saudi Arabia.
