Saudi Arabia’s PIF discloses investments in dozens of buyout firms

Saudi Arabia’s sovereign wealth fund has disclosed investments in dozens of private equity and venture capital firms via its Sanabil Investments arm, including Blackstone and General Atlantic.

The firms were listed on Sanabil’s website, which said it invests about $2bn in capital a year in “venture, growth capital and small buyouts.”

Others include KKR, Hellman & Friedman, Apollo, Brookfield and CVC.

The $600bn sovereign Public Investment Fund has been steering a plan to make the kingdom’s economy less reliant on oil revenues and attract foreign investment. It has invested in everything from electric vehicles, buying a majority stake in the US-based Lucid, to video gaming and sports.

Saudi Arabia is the world’s largest oil exporter and was one of the fastest growing economies last year.

The kingdom, which led Opec+ in an oil production cut earlier this week to prevent oil prices from falling, has attracted droves of bankers and investors, while much of the world has been worried about recession.

The disclosure by Sanabil is its first detailed list of investments, although it did not provide figures. The companies range from construction to the scooter rental business Bird and live streaming social broadcaster Caffeine.

The list gives a sense of Saudi Arabia’s international financial clout. Sanabil was formed by the government in 2009 and taken over by the PIF, with a mandate to invest in growth funds and buyouts.

The company says on its website that it aims to “become a globally influential investor in venture, growth and small buyout assets”.