Saudi Gazette report

RIYADH — Yasir Al-Rumayyan, governor of the Saudi Public Investment Fund (PIF), said that the coronavirus pandemic has exposed vast investment opportunities in the entire spectrum of technology.

“The PIF closely monitors developments in the technology sector, whether in the primary or secondary market, and many international lawmakers have expressed their apprehension of the enormous role of technology companies,” he said.

The Saudi sovereign wealth fund chief made the remarks while addressing the opening session of the 4th Future Investment Initiative (FII) conference at King Abdulaziz International Conference Center here on Wednesday.

The high-profile conference, with the theme of “The Neo Renaissance” is also being held virtually in four global cities of New York, Paris, Beijing and Mumbai simultaneously, and the speakers include a galaxy of global leaders, business tycoons and top company executives.

As many as 140 international speakers from sectors such as finance, healthcare, energy and education have confirmed their presence at the physical and virtual sessions of the conference. They include around 60 speakers who are gathering in Riyadh to address the session.

Referring to the changes in the investment scenario, Al-Rumayyan said: “It is time to pay attention to the effects of the investment decision on various components of the global community. Everyone was chasing the financial markets, but today we are thinking about direct investment strategies in parallel, by creating new sectors.”

Al-Rumayyan, who is also FII Institute chairman, noted that PIF’s five-year strategy, which was launched by Crown Prince Muhammad Bin Salman three days ago, included announcing the second phase of the Saudi Vision 2030 Realization Program.

“It will follow the new phase, which is part of the strategy, under which we want to invest not only in financial markets, but in new projects that will have an impact on the growth of the gross domestic product (GDP) in the Kingdom, and the creation of investment and job opportunities, and this link between the markets, and the effect that emanates from PIF’s strategy.”

In response to questions from the conference attendees, Al-Rumayyan explained that THE LINE project at NEOM is a revolutionary idea in the world of urban design for cities, describing the project’s objectives as reflecting the desire for future generations to enjoy the nature around them in THE LINE.

He also stressed the importance of renewable energy projects at NEOM that have already launched. “We have foreign investors including major international companies, while ACWA Power and NEOM, which are companies that we invest in PIF.

“This is a reflection of our investment in the real economy, and this reflects economic growth, and it comes side by side with our investments in the capital markets,” he said.

The governor emphasized PIF’s renewed commitment to continue working to support development and economic diversification efforts, and this is an important trend for investor sentiment in the financial markets.

Speaking about the mega Saudi projects, within Vision 2030, Al-Rumayyan said that the Saudi government has the tools to encourage foreign investment. “PIF will invest in the sectors like renewable energy, tourism and entertainment, and we have identified 13 vital sectors for investment in the Kingdom.”

The governor emphasized that PIF’s efforts are not limited to developing the Kingdom’s wealth by investing in financially viable projects only, but also extending to new sectors through which the Fund aims to promote the growth of promising sectors and achieve a sustainable economic and development impact.

Referring to PIF’s investment priorities related to environment, Al-Rumayyan said: “Owing to the multiplicity of bodies that assess environmental standards in the world, there is a problem in interpreting the standards and the extent to which this important aspect is achieved, and hence the Fund attaches great importance to it through its investments, and there are good ideas for the environment, governance and protection of environmental resources.”

The governor also noted that PIF has made remarkable achievements during the period between 2018 and 2020, and it contributed to achieving a clear impact at the local and global levels, such as raising the volume of assets by the end of 2020 to nearly SR1.5 trillion, and achieving a significant increase in the total return of shareholders, which doubled from about three percent in the period between 2014 and 2016 to about eight percent during the period between 2018 and 2020.

FII was able to bring together leaders, investors and policymakers from various countries with the aim of re-imagining the global economy in light of the continuing spread of the COVID-19 pandemic despite the hope provided by vaccines.