Saudi Arabia's Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman announced the transfer of 4% of Saudi Aramco shares (worth about $80 billion) to kingdom's sovereign wealth fund, Public Investment Fund (PIF), state news agency SPA reported on Sunday.
The crown prince said that the transfer would help restructure the country’s economy, and that the Saudi government remains the largest shareholder in Saudi Aramco after the transfer process, as it owns more than 94% of the company's shares.
The state oil giant said in a bourse filing that "this is a private transfer between the State and PIF, and the Company is not a party to the transfer and did not enter into any agreements or pay or receive any proceeds from the transfer."
It added that the transfer will not affect the company’s total number of issued shares, and "the shares transferred will rank equally alongside other existing ordinary shares in the Company."
The announcement of the transfer comes as Saudi Aramco is valued at just under $2 trillion and as oil trades above $90 a barrel — its highest level since 2014.
Saudi Aramco is the world’s biggest oil company, and its share stood at 37.3 Saudi riyals, or $9.94, ahead of trading Sunday.
