NEW YORK: The Saudi-US CEO Forum began in New York this morning, held during the visit of Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman to the US.
The forum is being attended by influential economic figures such as Jamie Dimon, CEO of JPMorgan, and Adena Friedman, CEO and president of NASDAQ.
It brings together the business elite from the US and the Kingdom for a day of formal presentations, panel discussions, and trade and cultural shows.
The Saudi Arabian Finance Minister Mohammed Al-Jadaan said in his opening remarks: "Saudi Arabia's path forward is a challenging and comprehensive one - encompassing financial and fiscal sectors - and one we cannot do without.
“2030 aims to deliver an expanding economy with sustainable momentum that generates business opportunities for both our companies and our business partners in the US.
“This forum is a demonstration that Saudi Arabia is focused on its future - the untapped potential in the Kingdom is significant. We are creating an inclusive, diverse and digitally enabled banking sector, underpinned by a globally recognized stability of the sector.
“You are here because you believe in the promise and opportunities of Saudi Arabia. We are here to demonstrate our eagerness to work with our partners."
In the opening panel of the conference, which included Khalid Al-Falih, iMinister of Energy, Industry and Mineral Resources of Saudi Arabia and chairman of Saudi Aramco and Dr. Majed Al-Kassabi, Minister of Commerce and Investment of Saudi Arabia, US Secretary of Commerce Wilbur Ross, speaking in a panel discussion, said: "We stood with Saudi Arabia back in 1938, eighty years later we stand with them as they are about to transform their society and economy."
Dr. Al-Kassabi said: “We are implementing an infrastructure and a rule of law to guarantee the protection of investors, that we have benchmarked on global excellence.”
LIVE: @SAUSCEOForum - @MIT president Rafael Reif: "#KSA is becoming a successful nation and a leading light in the region, it's important that partners help the Kingdom" #SAUS2018 || https://t.co/6AOCAjgiNV pic.twitter.com/CBBolwtvTK
— Arab News (@arabnews) March 27, 2018
LIVE: @SAUSCEOForum - #KAUST: "Educational transformation from where it is now to where we want it to be is vital - but not by 2030, by tomorrow - if we don't have that fast, we don't have the engine for #Vision2030" #SAUS2018 || https://t.co/6AOCAjgiNV pic.twitter.com/IJ6oxXYBV5
— Arab News (@arabnews) March 27, 2018
LIVE: @SAUSCEOForum - "The way women are looked at in KSA has changed massively, women now feel equal in #KSA, they are becoming much more visible - they are taking a role alongside men" #SAUS2018 || https://t.co/6AOCAjgiNV pic.twitter.com/aP2ezrBGWN
— Arab News (@arabnews) March 27, 2018
Meanwhile, during the event, Saudi Arabian and American companies signed 36 memorandums of understanding for deals worth $20 billion.
Saudi Aramco signed a number of agreements, including one with Google focusing on cloud services and other technological opportunities and Raytheon to establish national Internet security services. Also signed was a five-year initiative between the King Abdulaziz Centre for World Culture and National Geographic. Also included in the partnerships was a MoU between Saudi Industrial Development Fund (SIDF) and JP Morgan to discuss cooperation in industrial finance in Saudi Arabia.
Stephen Schwarzman, CEO of Blackstone Group LP, will host an event for the crown prince on Tuesday.
During his last day in New York, the crown prince will meet with technology companies. He will also visit Houston, Los Angeles, San Francisco and Seattle to cultivate investments, and is expected to host a banquet.
