RIYADH: Prince Alwaleed bin Talal, chairman of Kingdom Holding Company (KHC), tops Institutional Investor magazine’s 2009 list of the 12 of the Middle East’s Most Prominent and Influential Financiers.
The magazine stated: “As a barometer of the vertiginous rise and fall of the Gulf’s fortunes, few investors can rival Prince Alwaleed...his ambition still makes him one of the most fascinating Gulf investors to watch.”
The list includes Khaldoon Khalifa Al-Mubarak, chief executive, Development Co.; Arif Naqfi, founder and CEO, Abraaj Capital; Sheikh Hamad bin Jassim bin Jabr Al-Thani, CEO, Qatar Investment Authority; Bader Al-Sa’ad, MD, Kuwait Investment Authority; Sheikh Ahmed bin Zayad Al-Nahyan, MD, Abu Dhabi Investment Authority; Adel El-Labban, chief executive, Ahli United Bank; Hamad Al-Sayari, former governor, Saudi Arabian Monetary Agency; Abdullah Salim Bahamdan, chairman, National Commercial Bank; Mohammed Al-Gergawi, chairman, The Executive Office and Dubai Holding; Amr Al-Dabbagh, chairman and governor, Saudi Arabian General Investment Authority; and Hassan Heikal, CO-CEO, EFG, Hermes. Prince Alwaleed is known for his precision for exploring new and potential business opportunities and ventures in synchronization with the direction and fluctuations of the economic climate. His successful strategy in long-term investment has also paid off handsomely, which has earned him a global name in the world of business.
Consequently, KHC was listed on Tadawul in 2007 and has been involved in the creation of a diversified long-term investment portfolio of strategic stakes in well-known companies locally and around the world, in multiple sectors.
Furthermore, Prince Alwaleed’s unique progressive thinking and active social network with global leaders, decision makers and business people has firmly placed him and Kingdom Holding on the world business map.
Moreover, Prince Alwaleed is active in social responsibility projects through significant local and international donations made by Alwaleed’s philanthropic and humanitarian foundations spanning all the continents, including Africa and Asia.
Prince Alwaleed’s recognitions span over a decade and in the most recent one the prince topped Arabian Business Magazine’s 2009 fifty Richest Arabs List. Also, the prince was No. 1 in Arabian Business Magazine’s 2009 fifty Richest Saudi List. He was included in the 2009 Forbes World’s Powerful Billionaires list and in the 25 People Who will Affect Your Finances 2009 list in US News magazine. He was named the top single investor in Saudi Arabia according to Al Jazeerah newspaper that named investors who hold the most stakes in local companies.
The percentage of Prince Alwaleed’s share in Kingdom Holding Company is 95 percent, which is the largest by an individual investor. Also, the prince was ranked one of the top 25 billionaires in the 2009 Forbes Billionaires list.
In 2008, he was ranked the largest private investor on the Saudi stock exchange. Arabian Business ranked him No. 1 in its list of 100 Most Powerful Arabs for the fourth year running. Also in 2008, Institutional Investor magazine listed the prince on its first-ever ranking of the most-powerful figures in finance.
European Business magazine selected him as No. 1 Richest Arab in the World on the list of The World’s Richest Arabs. Zahrat Al-Khaleej magazine chose Prince Alwaleed Entertainment Personality of the Year according to its annual poll. The Times newspaper ranked Prince Alwaleed number five on the “25 Shaping Tomorrow’s World of Middle East Business” list. Forbes magazine ranked Prince Alwaleed No. 1 on the Middle East’s 20 Richest People list.
Institutional Investor magazine listed Prince Alwaleed in its 40th anniversary issue on the list of the World’s Most Powerful & Influential people in the last 40 years. Arabian Business magazine chose Prince Alwaleed on the top of the 50 Richest Arabs list. Almaal wal Aalam magazine’s poll voted Prince Alwaleed Economic Personality of the Year in the Arab World. In 2005, Prince Alwaleed ranked in Fortune Magazine’s 2005 list of Asia’s 25 Most Powerful.