SAUDI Arabia’s Prince Alwaleed bin Talal, said to have the world’s fifth-biggest fortune including investments in companies such as Citigroup, is planning what could well be the year’s biggest initial stock sale over the next four months, according to reports.
The prince wants to raise about $6 billion by selling a stake in his Kingdom Holding Co, Bloomberg reported. The wire quoted the prince as saying he would offer will offer at least 30 per cent of the Riyadh-based firm, Saudi Arabia’s biggest company by revenue. The wire quoted the prince as saying a publicly traded company has “better access to the debt and equity markets.” Kingdom Holding generated sales in 2004 of $18.8 billion, according to Arab News.
Alwaleed is also selling shares in Kingdom Hotel Investments, a hotel development unit he co-owns, raising as much as $408 million for expansion in real estate. The company said shares in its IPO would be priced at $9.25 each, valuing the company at $1.59 billion. The company includes the Four Season and Moevenpick hotel chains.
The Kingdom Holding Co also owns Kingdom Hotel International, through which the prince has teamed up with Colony Capital to buy the Fairmont Hotels & Resorts for $3.24 billion. Both businesses are owned by the Kingdom Trust, which was set up for the benefit of the prince and his family.
Last year, Prince Alwaleed bought a stake in London’s Savoy Hotel and announced plans to build a Four Seasons resort in Marrakesh, Morocco.