Goldman Sachs strengthens its presence in Saudi Arabia with the opening of a new office in Riyadh

Global investment bank Goldman Sachs has opened a new office in the King Abdullah Financial District in the Saudi capital Riyadh, strengthening its presence in the Middle East’s largest economy.

The Wall Street-based bank has been operating in the kingdom since 2008 and will move to the King Abdullah Financial District next year, joining Paris-based Rothschild & Co and several other major institutions that have established offices in the 1.6 million square metre complex.

Goldman Sachs made the move as the Future Investment Initiative conference in Riyadh, dubbed by some as Davos in the Desert, drew some of the biggest names in finance, including Goldman CEO David Solomon.

Boom in King Abdullah Financial District

The King Abdullah Financial District (KAFD) area had been dormant for years, until it was acquired by the Saudi sovereign wealth fund in 2018. Since then, several government entities, such as the Public Investment Fund and the Saudi Stock Exchange, have begun setting up offices, and the presence of foreign companies has accelerated.

These trends have accelerated following government efforts to attract foreign companies to set up their regional headquarters in the Kingdom.

Saudi Arabia’s efforts to lure foreign companies to set up regional headquarters in Riyadh appear to be paying off. Earlier this year, Goldman became the first major international bank to be granted a regional headquarters license, followed by Tokyo-based Mizuho Financial Group.

The boom in the KAFD region puts it in direct competition with other financial centres such as Abu Dhabi and Dubai. Traditionally, most foreign financial firms have served the wider region, with their largest regional presence in cities such as Dubai and Abu Dhabi.

Sultan Al-Obaidah, Chief Operating Officer at KAFD, said that Goldman’s presence in the financial district enhances the potential for further growth and supports the momentum of transformation in the Saudi financial sector.

Goldman Sachs is the third-biggest adviser on Middle Eastern equity offerings so far this year, according to data compiled by Bloomberg, including its work on deals such as Saudi Aramco’s $12 billion secondary offering.

Fadi Abu Ali and Zaid Khalid, Co-CEOs of Goldman Sachs Middle East and North Africa, said: “We see significant opportunities for doing business in Saudi Arabia and have ambitions to grow in asset and wealth management, banking and markets.”