Saudi prince gives 4% Aramco stake to public investment firm

Saudi prince gives 4% Aramco stake to public investment firm

NNA - Saudi Arabia’s crown prince announced Sunday the transfer of a 4% stake of the oil giant Saudi Aramco to a subsidiary of the kingdom’s sovereign wealth fund, further boosting its coffers as the kingdom tries to expand its economy beyond oil.

Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman’s decision, announced by the state-run Saudi Press Agency, sends the stake to the Saudi Arabian Investment Co., known as Sanabil Investments. Sanabil is under the sovereign wealth fund known as the Public Investment Fund.

“The transfer will also solidify PIF’s strong financial position and credit rating,” the statement about the deal said. It gave no possible investment targets for either Sanabil or the PIF.

Saudi Aramco, formally known as the Saudi Arabian Oil Co., acknowledged the shares going to Sanabil. It said the Saudi government remains the oil firm’s biggest shareholder, with over 90% of its stock.

“This is a private transfer between the state and Sanabil, and the company is not a party to the transfer and did not enter into any agreements or pay or receive any proceeds from the transfer,” Aramco said in a stock market filing.

In February 2022, another 4% of Aramco had been transferred to the PIF. Just 1.73% of the