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An Interview with Prince Alwaleed  Saudi Arabia’s global investor: An interview with Prince Alwaleed Saudi Arabia’s global investor: An interview with Prince Alwaleed The biggest individual foreign investor in the United States discusses the pace of reform in Saudi Arabia, his investments, and the future of Islam. Kito de Boer His Royal Highness Prince Alwaleed Bin Talal Bin Abdulaziz Alsaud— or Alwaleed, as he’s known in the Middle East—is a highly successful international investor, a member of the Saudi Royal family (and nephew of the king), and the biggest individual foreign investor in the United States. He first came to prominence in the West in 99, after paying $590 million for a 4.9 percent stake in then-struggling Citicorp (now Citigroup). His investment quickly became worth billions of dollars when the US financial giant pulled itself back from the brink of bankruptcy and resumed its profitable growth. Most recently, he has attracted headlines by teaming up with Bill Gates to back a $3.7 billion management buyout of the Four Seasons Hotels and Resorts. Alwaleed’s business empire today includes extensive direct investments (in real estate, banking, retailing, industrial, media, and construction) in Saudi Arabia and elsewhere in the region—such as private holdings centered on his Kingdom Holding (KHC) projects—plus a range of significant minority interests in some of the world’s more prominent companies. Besides Citigroup (where his shareholding now stands at 3.6 percent), his holdings 2 Web exclusive, December 2006 include Fairmont Hotels and Article at a glance Resorts, News Corporation, Time His Royal Highness Prince Alwaleed Bin Talal Bin Abdulaziz Alsaud is attracting growing attention as an Warner, the Walt Disney Company, international investor, most recently by teaming up with Canary Wharf (in the United Bill Gates to back a management buyout of the Four Kingdom), Apple Computer, and Seasons hotel group. Motorola. Alwaleed is estimated to Alwaleed, one of the world’s richest men, has an be one of the wealthiest people in empire that spans extensive property, media, and the world. construction interests in the Middle East and an array of minority stakes in leading Western companies. He combines a passion for market-driven economic and His significance, though, goes well social reform in his native Saudi Arabia and the region beyond his business and financial at large with a traditional Muslim religious outlook. career. A self-described “bridge” In this interview he talks about the pace of economic between Arab and Western cultures, progress in the Gulf states, the changing pattern of global investment flows, and the urgent need for he combines a traditional Muslim a debate within Islam and greater understanding outlook with a passion for market- between world religions. driven economic and social reform. Alwaleed prowls Wall Street and Related articles business boardrooms during the on mckinseyquarterly.com week yet spends his weekends “The new Silk Road: Opportunities for Asia dispensing charity to the Bedouin at and the Gulf,” his tented desert camp near Riyadh. Web exclusive, July 2006 He finances mosques in his native “Building world-class capital markets,” Saudi Arabia while promoting the Web exclusive, July 2005 cause of women as earnestly as any “Industry comment: The outlook for European corporate and investment banking,” campaigner in Europe or the United Web exclusive, August 2006 States—proudly pointing out, for example, that one of the pilots of his private plane is a woman. In this conversation with McKinsey director Kito de Boer in Paris, Alwaleed discusses the pace of reform in Saudi Arabia, global investment flows, and the debate that must take place within Islam. The Quarterly: How would you compare what’s happening in the Gulf today with the last oil boom, in the 1970s? Alwaleed: Last time round we rushed into a lot of construction projects, and I think some things then were done haphazardly, but the countries of the Gulf have learned from those mistakes. Governments are now trying to do things properly and with more precision. Much of the basic Q4 2006 Prince Alwaleed interview Bio Exhibit 1 of 1 Glance: Biography of Prince AlwaleedSaudi BinArabia’s Talal globalBin Abdulaziz investor: Alsaud An interview with Prince Alwaleed 3 Vital statistics • Born March 7, 1955, in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia • Son of Talal Bin Abdulaziz Alsaud and Princess Mona El-Solh (daughter of Riad El-Solh, first prime minister of modern day Lebanon); grandson of the founder of Saudi Arabia, King Abdulaziz Alsaud • Married with 2 children Education • Graduated in 1979 with BS in business administration from Menlo College, California • Earned MA in social science from Syracuse University in 1985 • Advanced degrees include – Doctorate in business management, Kyungwon University, Seoul, South Korea (1998) – Doctorates in law from Syracuse University (1999), American University in Cairo, Exeter University (2002) – Doctorate in humanities from AlAqsa University, Gaza (2004) – Honorary degrees: doctorate of humane letters, University of New Haven (1992); doctorates of letters from University for Development Studies, Ghana (2004) and Islamic University of Uganda (2005) Career highlights • Private entrepreneur and international investor with holdings in agriculture, automobile manufacturing, banking, broadcasting and media, computers and electronics, entertainment, hospitality, retailing, supermarkets, telecom- munications, tourism, travel, upscale fashion Prince Alwaleed Bin Talal Bin • Kingdom Holding (KHC) (1980–present) – Owner Abdulaziz Alsaud • Established many business ventures, initially focusing on construction and real estate (1980) Prince Alwaleed Bin Talal Bin Fast facts Abdulaziz Alsaud • Recognized at 2nd Economic Business Women’s Forum in Cairo, in 2005, for his support of Arab women’s roles in economy and society • Honored with global achievement award, in 2005, by the American-Arab Anti-Discrimination Committee (ADC) • At 2006 International Islamic Finance Forum, received the Sheikh Mohammed Bin Rashid Almaktoum Islamic Finance Award for lifetime achievement in socially responsible investment infrastructure—airports, roads, universities, et cetera—was put in place in the 980s and 990s, so political energies in Saudi Arabia can now be devoted to things that will impact the social structure, such as reducing unemployment, building houses for the poor, and other good causes. A big achievement, in my view, has been the debt reduction program in Saudi Arabia, which has brought down public-sector debt from 118 percent of GDP at its peak to around 40 percent today, with a target of eliminating it completely by the end of 2007. It’s important that the bulk of the excess money be channeled into new industries with added value that can give us a good income in the future. The Quarterly: How do you feel about the pace of economic reform in Saudi Arabia? Could the oil bonanza be an excuse to slow things down? 4 Web exclusive, December 2006 Alwaleed: Although some observers assume that the brakes will be put on political reform because of the new oil wealth, I honestly don’t believe this to be the case. For sure, I would like some things to be quicker. First, bureaucracy needs to be cut. When the law establishing the Saudi Arabian General Investment Authority [SAGIA] was enacted, the idea was that it would encourage one-stop shopping for international investors, but I am not certain we are seeing that happen. There is also a need for more competitive tax laws. We have to compare ourselves not only with the rest of the region but with Eastern Europe, Latin America, and Africa. It is a very tough climate for inward investment, and we have to go further than lowering the capital gains tax to 20 percent, from 40 percent. Finally, there are the labor laws, which—although less important than the first two issues—are still not clear enough. The Quarterly: From the outside, Saudi Arabia sometimes seems to struggle to turn reform ideas into action because, unlike, say, in Bahrain or Dubai, no one person or institution appears to be driving the agenda. Is that fair? Alwaleed: In the years when he was crown prince and since he became king, a year ago, King Abdullah has initiated major political, social, and economic reforms. In general, Saudi Arabia is now looked at favorably by international investors. We see that in the many companies locating there. King Abdullah would like to move faster, but for him it’s like moving a big yacht—it takes time to turn it round. The comparison between Saudi Arabia and the Gulf countries, whether it be Dubai, Abu Dhabi, or Bahrain, is not right. These are all city or emirate states, whereas Saudi Arabia is a giant country with a lot of different constituencies: the Islamic constituency, the political constituency, the royal family, the conservatives, and the Bedouin. On top of that we are at the vanguard of Islam, and we have the wider Muslim population of the world— .3 billion people—looking to us for leadership. To move in Saudi Arabia, with all these entrenched interests, is very difficult. That’s not to say I’m a defender of the status quo. Far from it. I’m frustrated that women can’t drive—we’re the only country in the world where they can’t—and that while it’s legal to buy a videotape and see it on the small screen, we don’t have any cinemas. These may be cosmetic issues, but they’re important. Saudi Arabia’s global investor: An interview with Prince Alwaleed 5 The Quarterly: Are you worried that some of your neighbors in the Gulf are moving ahead more quickly? Alwaleed: Saudi Arabia is the anchor of the region, just as Germany, France, Italy, and the United Kingdom matter economically much more than Slovakia, Poland, or Greece in Europe. I don’t agree that we will be left behind, but we have to take lessons from what is happening now in, say, Dubai and Abu Dhabi.
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