DUBAI: Morgan Stanley has launched an investment vehicle that allows international investors to access the Saudi Equity Fund.
The MSINVF Morgan Stanley Saudi Equity Fund will give foreign investors access to the company’s on-ground investment team, who have experience in the local market, the bank said in a statement.
Founded in 2009, the fund aims to provide long-term capital appreciation and growth by investing in securities listed on the Saudi Stock Exchange (Tadawul) and in securities offered in the course of an initial public offering in the Kingdom.
“We are confident that this launch will create great interest amongst investors and support the attraction of capital inflows into Saudi Arabia as it continues to diversify its economy through the Vision 2030 framework,” Najmul Hasnain, the head of the Saudi equity team for Morgan Stanley, said.
Saudi shares have attracted increased interest from overseas investors this year amid a wider rise in emerging markets worldwide.
“Saudi Arabia continues to be one of the most promising capital markets in the Middle East having seen the introduction of a number of significant market initiatives that are expected to drive an increase in company listings,” Sammy Kayello, chief executive of Morgan Stanley’s Middle East and North Africa unit, said.
Morgan Stanley opens Saudi Equity Fund to foreign investors
https://arab.news/cfn3h
Morgan Stanley opens Saudi Equity Fund to foreign investors
- The MSINVF Morgan Stanley Saudi Equity Fund will give foreign investors access to the company’s on-ground investment team
- The fund aims to provide long-term capital appreciation and growth by investing in securities listed on the Saudi Stock Exchange
PIF’s Humain invests $3bn in Elon Musk’s xAI prior to SpaceX acquisition
JEDDAH: Humain, an artificial intelligence company owned by Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund, invested $3 billion in Elon Musk’s xAI shortly before the startup was acquired by SpaceX.
As part of xAI’s Series E round, Humain acquired a significant minority stake in the company, which was subsequently converted into shares of SpaceX, according to a press release.
The transaction reflects PIF’s broader push to position Saudi Arabia as a central hub in the global AI ecosystem, as part of its Vision 2030 diversification strategy.
Through Humain, the fund is seeking to combine capital deployment with infrastructure buildout, partnerships with leading technology firms, and domestic capacity development to reduce reliance on oil revenues and expand into advanced industries.
The $3 billion commitment offers potential for long-term capital gains while reinforcing the company’s role as a strategic, scaled investor in transformative technologies.
CEO Tareq Amin said: “This investment reflects Humain’s conviction in transformational AI and our ability to deploy meaningful capital behind exceptional opportunities where long-term vision, technical excellence, and execution converge, xAI’s trajectory, further strengthened by its acquisition by SpaceX, one of the largest technology mergers on record, represents the kind of high-impact platform we seek to support with significant capital.”
The deal builds on a large-scale collaboration announced in November at the US-Saudi Investment Forum, where Humain and xAI committed to developing over 500 megawatts of next-generation AI data center and computing infrastructure, alongside deploying xAI’s “Grok” models in the Kingdom.
In a post on his X handle, Amin said: “I’m proud to share that Humain has invested $3 billion into xAI’s Series E round, just prior to its historic acquisition by SpaceX. Through this transaction, Humain became a significant minority shareholder in xAI.”
He added: “The investment builds on our previously announced 500MW AI infrastructure partnership with xAI in Saudi Arabia, reinforcing Humain’s role as both a strategic development partner and a scaled global investor in frontier AI.”
He noted that xAI’s trajectory, further strengthened by SpaceX’s acquisition, exemplifies the high-impact platforms Humain aims to support through strategic investments.
Earlier in February, SpaceX completed the acquisition of xAI, reflecting Elon Musk’s strategy to integrate AI with space exploration.
The combined entity, valued at $1.25 trillion, aims to build a vertically integrated innovation ecosystem spanning AI, space launch technology, and satellite internet, as well as direct-to-device communications and real-time information platforms, according to Bloomberg.
Humain, founded in August, consolidates Saudi Arabia’s AI initiatives under a single entity. From the outset, its vision has extended beyond domestic markets, participating across the global AI value chain from infrastructure to applications.
The company represents a strategic initiative by PIF to diversify the Kingdom’s economy and reduce oil dependence by investing in knowledge-based and advanced technologies.
