RIYADH — Dozens of global policymakers and tycoons will attend a Saudi investment summit starting Tuesday, marking a strong turnout at the three-day Future Investment Initiative (FII).
The Public Investment Fund (PIF) Sunday announced 49 partners who are playing a central role in the development and delivery of the third annual FII, which will take place here from Oct. 29-31.
Leading the high-profile attendees are Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Brazil's President Jair Bolsonaro, guests of honor who are set to address the conference, a Western official told AFP.
US Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin will also lead a high-powered American delegation including Jared Kushner, President Donald Trump's senior advisor and son-in-law.
"This is the biggest event on the annual business calendar in Saudi Arabia," said Steffen Hertog, an associate professor at the London School of Economics.
Blue-chip firms such as Goldman Sachs, JPMorgan Chase and Citigroup are also set to send top executives to this year's event, according to US media.
Global banks and consultants are vying for business around the hotly anticipated initial public offering of state oil giant Aramco, the world's most profitable company.
The Kingdom plans to list as much as five percent of Aramco, which analysts say could be worth between $1.5 trillion and $2 trillion.
Saudi Arabia recently climbed 30 places to 62nd in the World Bank's Ease of Doing Business index for carrying out what it called a "record number of business reforms in the past year".
In addition to the event’s partners, PIF also announced that nearly 300 leading global decision-makers, investors and experts from more than 30 countries have been confirmed to speak at FII 2019.
The speakers reflect the global perspective of FII, with significant numbers coming from North America (39%), Europe (20%), Asia (19%) and the Middle East (15%). More than 6,000 senior-level attendees have also registered their participation for the event.
FII 2019 partners fall into three distinct categories:
• 16 strategic partners who are helping to shape the overall direction and development of the event. They include Dow Chemicals, HSBC, Samsung, LuLu Group International, Reliance Industries Limited, DP World, Riyad Bank, Saudi Arabia Basic Industries Corporation, Saudi Arabian Airlines, The Red Sea Development Company, Aramco, STC, and Ma'aden.
• 12 knowledge partners, comprised of some of the world’s leading professional services and consultancy firms, who are tasked with curating and hosting FII’s 12 cross-sector taskforces, designed to explore emerging business and investment trends and to identify early-stage growth opportunities. They include Deloitte, Ernst & Young, KPMG, Palladium, PricewaterhouseCoopers, Strategy&, SIA Partners, and the World Ocean Council.
• 21 technology partners from across the world who will drive conversations about new and emerging trends in tech, while showcasing some of the latest cutting-edge innovations from the fields of Artifical Inteligence, Augmented Reality, robotics, connectivity, and more. They include Extreme E, Gravity, Green Impact, Hive, Huawei, Markable, Ping An Good Doctor, Pure Harvest, Riva GmbH Energy Solutions, SenseTime, SoftBank Robotics, and Virgin Hyperloop One.
FII was created to drive conversation and collaboration around some of the most pressing topics currently facing the world today — including sustainability, technology and the future of society. FII is dedicated to providing a truly inclusive platform that facilitates free and creative dialogue between policymakers, business leaders, investors, innovators and world leaders. — Agencies
