admin LONDON: Saudi Arabia’s investment momentum across energy, healthcare and culture continues to grow, even as renewed tensions in Iran and the Arabian Gulf continue to cloud the regional outlook.
That was the message from business leaders and investors at the 18th edition of the BMG Economic Forum held at the London Stock Exchange on July 8, with attendees arguing that despite geopolitical uncertainty long-term capital flows into the Kingdom remain intact.
Jerry Inzerillo, CEO of Diriyah Company, told Arab News the project has continued to attract strong interest despite recent geopolitical disruptions.
“The subject of foreign direct investment is very important right now,” Inzerillo said, adding that “we haven’t lost any of our progress” over the past few months.
He pointed to the recent SR2.7 billion ($727 million) main construction contract for the Waldorf Astoria hotel, residences and mixed-use superblock, awarded to a joint venture between Hassan Allam Construction Saudi and UCC Saudi, as evidence of continued momentum around Diriyah.
Inzerillo said the project has become a flagship for Saudi Arabia’s cultural transformation, describing it as an effort to create “value through culture.”
That theme was echoed by Dr. Badr Al-Bader, CEO of the Misk Foundation, who said heritage is central to identity and that helps young Saudis build confidence and a sense of grounding.
“When the roots are grounded, it goes on,” he said. “It allows us to build bridges in the world.”
Al-Bader said culture becomes economically meaningful when it creates jobs, institutions and pathways for young people, framing it as both a social and economic driver.
The forum also highlighted Saudi Arabia’s ambitions in healthcare and biotechnology.
Dr. Ibrahim Alnajashi, co-founder of Saudi healthcare fintech and private credit firm Seha Invest, described the Kingdom as an increasingly attractive market for biotech investment and said it is well placed to become a regional hub.
“We hope this will result in many products that can be utilized in hospitals and patients, and also create new high-quality jobs for Saudi local talents and upscale the R&D ecosystem in the Kingdom,” he said.
During the forum, Seha Invest announced a $500 million partnership with Y-Innovations to support biotechnology and health care development in Saudi Arabia, including technology transfer, local research and development, and efforts to localize vaccine production and manufacturing.
Later in the day, a panel on geopolitics and investment focused on how businesses should respond to uncertainty, with Dr. Carole Nakhle, CEO of Crystol Energy, arguing that companies should concentrate less on forecasting crises and more on building resilient business models.
She said recent tensions had reinforced the importance of energy infrastructure resilience.
“It’s not just about whether we can produce energy, but whether we can get that energy safely and readily to the market,” she said. “Infrastructure resilience has become just as important as production.”
Nakhle added that the energy transition will take time and that countries should pursue a diversified energy mix rather than assume fossil fuels can be rapidly replaced.
The forum ended with the launch of the Barada Fund, an initiative aimed at supporting economic development efforts in Syria.
