[ad_1]
Elsewhere, PIF spent $4.9 billion last April to acquire California mobile game developer Scopely, which will become Japan’s Nintendo’s majority shareholder in 2023. The Saudi fund also bought a stake in Brazilian mining group Vale.
Saudi Arabia’s PIF jumped from third to first place in the global ranking of sovereign wealth fund disbursements last year. In 2021, it wasn’t even in the top 10.
The PIF had a relatively modest presence on the world stage until it was reorganized eight years ago by Saudi Arabia’s de facto ruler, Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman.
The crown prince, known as MBS, has put the sovereign wealth fund at the center of his “Vision 2030” plan aimed at diversifying Saudi Arabia away from oil as net zero leads to lower demand.
The most famous investments are made in the world of sports.
A Saudi wealth fund bought Newcastle United Football Club in 2021, spending millions to lure some of the world’s highest-profile players to the Saudi Professional League.
He also created the well-funded LIV Golf League to compete with the PGA Tour, and later agreed to merge the startup with established tournament organizers.
Saudis have been accused of “sports washing,” a practice that human rights activists say is aimed at boosting Saudi Arabia’s reputation while covering up its totalitarian abuses.
Bin Salman acknowledged the term in an interview on Fox News, saying, “I don’t care.”
He said, “If sportswashing increases my GDP by 1%, then I will continue sportswashing.”
As well as investing abroad, Saudi Arabia is also investing heavily in plans to rebuild its domestic economy, including a $5 billion plan for a new city called Neom. Planned for an area near the Red Sea, the proposal includes a mirrored skyscraper several miles long.
[ad_2]
Source link
