Global Investment House "Global" announced today it received license to operate in Saudi Arabia, a leap in the company’s expansions strategy across regional markets.
Global Investment House Saudi Arabia, Global-Saudi as it will be known, is a Saudi joint stock company with a capital of 50 million Saudi Riyals.
The new company is a fully fledged investment bank set to carry out various financial services such as; the establishment and management of investment funds, portfolio management, International brokerage, private and public placement, underwriting, advisory, dealings as a principal and as agent, and custody.
Global currently operate in 14 countries including branches and representative offices in Bahrain, Qatar, Dubai, Abu Dhabi, Yemen, Jordan, Sudan and India.
Mrs. Maha Al-Ghunaim, Chairperson and Managing Director of Global, said that the Global-Saudi aims to play an effective role in the Saudi capital market by introducing value added investment services and products, a role the company believes to undertake in all the markets and countries in which it operates.
“We firmly believe in the importance and necessity of having a direct presence in the Saudi market and to take advantage of this huge economy and capital market which the kingdom enjoys, especially since Global is disgustingly active and has an impressive track-record in placements and corporate finance operations, along with the establishment and management of investment funds.”
She pointed that the company currently manages more than 30 investment fund various strategies.
Al-Ghunaim stressed that at present the economic environment in Saudi Arabia is fertile and more promising than ever before, as has been evident in the significant rise in imports during 2006 which demonstrates the strength of economic activity in the Kingdom.
In addition, the Kingdom is moving at an accelerated pace in the privatization of its infrastructure, utility services, and mobile communications, which was evident in last week’s acquisition of the Kuwait-based Mobile Telecommunications Company (MTC-Vodafone) of the third mobile service provider license in Saudi.
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It is worth noting that the Saudi’s nominal Gross Domestic Product (GDP) is estimated to have grown by 12.4% last year to reach SR1,301.0bn (US$346.9bn), while the real GDP is estimated to have grown by 4.2%. Furthermore, the debt as percent of GDP declined from 93.3% in 2001 to the current 28%.
Revenues are 38.9% lower than the year 2006 actual figures of SR655 billion, whereas the actual revenues of 2006 were higher by 68% than the budgeted revenues reported for 2006.
On the other hand, Al-Ghunaim explained that Global had been directly or indirectly investing in Saudi Arabia in various sectors in the past; however, "this license will elevate our role as an effective player in Saudi’s economy and capital market, and will make us interact faster with the major changes the Saudi national economy is undergoing."
She added, "Our entry to Saudi Arabia following the ambitious plans and projects initiated by H.R.H. King Abdullah bin Abdulaziz, from opening economic and industrial cities and the development of the Saudi economy, present us at Global with great challenges to keep up with the fast growth momentum."
On the other side, Global Chairperson and Managing Director commended the Saudi Capital Market Authority for their high efficiency and good management, particularly the Authorisation & Inspection Department. She praised their cooperation in facilitating the process of issuing the license in a relatively short period and granting Global all the requested investment activities, a testimony to company’s solid qualifications and the Authority’s confidence in Global.
In conclusion, Global Chairperson reiterated the company’s commitment to provide unique investment services and award winning products to its clients in Saudi Arabia, the latest of which had won “The World Islamic Funds Excellence Award for 2007” from the World Islamic Funds & Capital Markets Conference.
Today, Global is listed in the Kuwait Stock Exchange, Bahrain Stock Exchange, and the Dubai Financial Market. Global managed the listing of several companies in Kuwait and Dubai markets, in addition to acting as a lead manager for local and regional firms. Furthermore, the company is active in acquiring major stakes in successful local and regional companies.
About Global Investment House “Global”
Global Investment House “Global” is a full-fledged investment company incorporated in 1998, and falls under the regulation of the Central Bank of Kuwait. Its underlying foundation is to meet the high expectations of local and international clients, and to enhance the investment service industry and the capital market in Kuwait and the region. Today, Global stock lists on the Kuwait, Bahrain, and Dubai Stock Exchanges, with branches and affiliates in Bahrain, Dubai and Abu Dhabi (UAE), Jordan, Qatar, and Sudan. Global plays an important role in promoting investment opportunities in the Arabian Gulf Peninsula to investors through expert financial engineering, in-depth research and reports to advance the capital market in the region. Thus, Global’s achievements have been recognized on local, regional, and international levels. The company’s current assets under management reached KD2.130 billion (USD7.355 billion) as of 31 March 2007.
