Saudi Arabia transfers $80B in shares to wealth fund

Saudi Arabia has transferred shares worth $80 billion to its sovereign wealth fund as the oil-rich nation hopes to rival Norway and Singapore’s state-managed funds and invest in green projects, Report informs referring to The Guardian.

Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, Saudi Arabia’s de facto ruler, said 4% of shares in Saudi Aramco, the world’s biggest oil exporter, would be transferred to the kingdom’s sovereign wealth fund as part of efforts to recalibrate the oil-dominated economy.

The transfer is the latest sign that Saudi Arabia wants to open up the oil giant and “crown jewel” of the Saudi economy, the Arab world’s largest.

The crown prince, who was blamed by the US for sanctioning the murder of the Washington Post journalist Jamal Khashoggi, was quoted as saying the “transfer of 4% of Aramco shares to the Public Investment Fund (PIF)… is part of the kingdom’s long-term strategy to support the restructuring of its economy.”

He said the kingdom wants the investment fund to have $1 trillion in assets by the end of 2025. The fund, the centerpiece of official moves to end economic reliance on oil, had less than half that amount before this deal.

Crown Prince Mohammed stressed that the Saudi state would remain the dominant Aramco shareholder with a 94% stake. He is also head of the sovereign PIF.

The oil giant raised $6 billion in Islamic bonds in June last year so that it could pay dividends to the new shareholders.