BlackRock secures $5 billion deal to open new firm in Saudi Arabia
The world’s biggest money manager will run an outpost backed by the Public Investment Fund with the aim of attracting cash from foreign investors
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Larry Fink, Chairman and CEO of BlackRock
BlackRock has secured a deal with Saudi Arabia to introduce a multi-class investment firm in the kingdom with a $5 billion anchor investment from the Public Investment Fund.
The world’s biggest money manager will open BlackRock Riyadh Investment Management with the aim of attracting foreign investment to both the kingdom and the wider region – while building up Saudi capital markets through the funds it manages.
The new Riyadh outpost is the latest in a flood of interest from money managers all vying for a piece of the deep-pocketed and increasingly active Gulf sovereign wealth funds.
“We are excited to build on the deep partnership we have developed with PIF over many years to launch this first-of-its-kind international investment management platform in Saudi Arabia,” BlackRock CEO Larry Fink said in a statement. “Saudi Arabia has become an increasingly attractive destination for international investment . . . and we are pleased to offer investors from around the world the opportunity to take part.”