- Foreign investment must be limited to stocks, explains CMA.
- Non-Saudis will not be allowed to hold more than 49% of the shares.
- The market regulator allowed foreign investments in listed companies.
Dubai: The Saudi Arabian market regulator said on Monday that it would allow foreign investments in listed companies that have real estate in the two most sacred sites of Mecca and Madina, while the Gulf Pays seeks to attract more investments.
This decision will allow foreigners to invest in companies whose income is based on the pilgrimage, one of the main sources of income for the kingdom rich in oil.
The Saudi Arabian market for the market for Saudi Arabia, the capital Market Authority (CMA), said in a press release that the move was aimed at attracting foreign capital and providing liquidity for present and future projects in the two cities.
Saudi Arabia said it was aimed at welcoming 30 million pilgrims for the Hajj and the pilgrimage all year round in Omra per year by 2030. In 2019, it won around 12 billion dollars of the two pilgrimages, According to official data.
The annual pilgrimage plays a vital role in the economy of the country and increasing the number of pilgrims is an integral part of its 2030’s economic reform program which aims to wean the economy of petroleum income.
The reference index of Saudi Arabia .tasi increased by 0.2%, led by 10% increases from the development company of Jabal Omar 4250.SE and the Makkah Construction and Development Company 4100. who have real estate in Mecca.
The Stock Exchange, the largest in the Arab Gulf region with a market capitalization of 10.2 Billions of Riyals (2.72 billions of dollars), opened up to foreign investors in 2015 in order to attract more funds And has seen a burst of new announcements in recent years.
The CMA said that under Monday moving decision, foreign investments would be limited to actions, convertible debt instruments or both, and excluded “strategic foreign investors”.
The guard dog added that people without Saudi nationality would not be authorized to have more than 49% of the actions of the companies involved.
In 2021, it allowed non-Saudis to subscribe to real estate funds investing within the limits of Mecca and Madina.