Citigroup Said to Win Approval to Trade Saudi Arabian Stocks - Bloomberg Business

Citigroup Said to Win Approval to Trade Saudi Arabian Stocks - Bloomberg Business:

"Citigroup Inc. has won approval to trade Saudi Arabian equities, its first banking license since exiting the country in 2004, according to two people with knowledge of the matter.
The U.S. bank has already started directly investing in companies listed on the Saudi Stock Exchange after receiving the Qualified Foreign Investment license from the Capital Market Authority, the people said, asking not to be identified as the information is private. Citigroup joins banks including HSBC Holdings Plc and asset manager Ashmore Group in obtaining the license after the Arab world’s biggest stock market opened to direct foreign investment in June.
The license marks a breakthrough for the U.S. bank in the Middle East’s largest economy after it sold a 20 percent stake in Samba Financial Group more than a decade ago. The U.S. bank said at the time its strategy was to invest in countries where it could have majority control of banks it ran. The closure ended an almost 50 year presence in the kingdom and was called a “mistake” in 2007 by Mohammed al-Shroogi, the bank’s then managing director for the Middle East. Samba is now the third largest bank in Saudi Arabia by assets and profits, according to data compiled by Bloomberg."



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