Prince Alwaleed is known for his precision in exploring new and potential business opportunities and ventures in synchronization with the direction and fluctuations of the economic climate. Consequently, KHC was listed on Tadawul in 2007 and Prince Alwaleed, who owns 95 percent of the company, 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 covering real estate, media, banking and hotels.
Prince Alwaleed’s recognitions span over a decade and the most recent include ranked number one in Arabian Business Magazine’s 2010 Power 100 list of the World’s Most Influential Arabs, ranked number one in Middle East’s Magazine’s 2009 list of the World’s 50 Most Influential Arabs, ranked one of the top 25 billionaires in the 2010 and 2009 Forbes Billionaires lists, featured in Elan magazine’s 2009 list of Top Entrepreneurs of the Year, topped Institutional Investor magazine’s 2009 list of the 12 of the Middle East’s Most Prominent and Influential Financiers, topped Arabian Business Magazine’s 2009 fifty Richest Arabs List.
Also the prince was number one in Arabian Business Magazine’s 50 Richest Saudi List, 2009, included in the 2009 Forbes World’s Powerful Billionaires list, in the 25 People Who will Affect Your Finances 2009 list in US News magazine, named the top single investor in Saudi Arabia according to Al Jazeerah newspaper that named investors who hold the most stakes in local companies as the prince’s 95 percent share in Kingdom Holding Company makes him the largest individual investor.
In 2008, the prince was ranked the largest private investor on the Saudi stock exchange and Arabian Business ranked him number one in their list of 100 Most Powerful Arabs for the fourth year running. Also in 2008, Institutional Investor magazine listed Prince Alwaleed on its first-ever ranking of the most-powerful figures in finance, European Business magazine selected Prince Alwaleed as the number one 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 and 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 number 1 on the Middle East’s 20 Richest People List, Institutional Investor magazine listed Prince Alwaleed on their 40th anniversary issue on the list of the World’s Most Powerful & Influential people in the last 40 years and 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 and in 2005 Prince Alwaleed’s ranking in Fortune Magazine’s 2005 list of Asia’s 25 Most Powerful.
Moreover, the prince is active in social responsibility projects through significant local and international donations made by Alwaleed Bin Talal’s philanthropic and humanitarian foundations that span all the continents. Furthermore, in 2010 Prince Alwaleed won the ITP “Humanitarian of the Year” award for his three decades of philanthropic work, received the ‘Knight of Giving Award’ during the 2010 Abu Dhabi CSR Conference, was acknowledged for his active philanthropy and was featured among 500 Most Influential Muslims List in Islamica Magazine, 2009, with the magazine describing the prince as “...an entrepreneur and investor who has built up a fortune through real estate and the stock market...His philanthropic clout comes from his position among the richest in the world.”
Moreover, the prince was awarded the Special Award for Philanthropy by Arabian Business during the Arabian Business Saudi Achievement Awards event in 2007. In addition, he is an advocate for the promotion of East-West cultural and religious dialogue for tolerance and understanding in line with the initiative of Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Abdullah. In recognition of this, Time magazine listed Prince Alwaleed on the Time 100 issue and among the 12 Power Givers around the world for raising the profile of Islamic history and culture around the world in 2007.
