Saudi Arabia reports SAR 107 bln debt issuances in H1 2022, regulations review ongoing: ElKuwaiz

Chairman of the Capital Market Authority Mohammed ElKuwaiz

Debt issuances in the Saudi market reached SAR 107 billion in the first half of 2022, a twofold increase compared to the same period of 2021, despite higher interest rates, Chairman of the Capital Market Authority (CMA), Mohammed ElKuwaiz, said during the Financial Sector Conference Talks.

Work is also ongoing on reviewing the regulations of debt offering to make it easier for issuers, he added.

On the other hand, ElKuwaiz explained that the investment needs of Saudi Arabia’s economy in the coming period might see for the first time the Kingdom’s switch from capital outflows to inflows. Accordingly, the financial sector is entirely required to play this new role during this exceptional period of the Kingdom’s history.

Assets under management (AUMs) by investment funds in Saudi Arabia reached SAR 530 billion, with an annual growth rate of up to 20% over the last five years as the number of subscribers exceeded 675,000.

Other types of funds also witnessed growth, such as the direct financing investment funds and non-profit funds.

The new categories of investment funds have a combined value of over SAR 100 billion, which is 20% higher than the value of investment funds in the Kingdom, ElKuwaiz added.

The debt instruments market accounted for 25% of the Kingdom’s gross domestic product (GDP) by the end of H1 2022, recording a surge of 150% over the last five years, he concluded.