The Euromoney Saudi Arabia Conference is scheduled to take place on May 2 and 3 in Riyadh, while the executive summary on real estate investment trusts will be released on May 1. The Kingdom is expected to see growth in major new investment opportunities in 2017, as new laws allow Saudi corporations to list their shares on the stock market, adding new momentum to both the small and medium-sized enterprise (SME) sector and the stock market. Last February, the Saudi Stock Exchange (Tadawul) launched the «Nomo» parallel market by listing and commencing trading for seven companies with an initial market capitalization of approximately 1.9 billion Saudi riyals.
These companies operate in a range of sectors, including retail and food services, and all have posted strong gains, with their shares rising nearly to the daily limit on the first day of trading—a sign of strong investor interest in the Kingdom’s small and medium-sized enterprises.
The «Nomu» parallel market is an alternative trading platform available to investors qualified for direct investment, Retail investors can also access this market through specific investment funds, which helps create new diversification options.
Euromoney Saudi Arabia, held in partnership with the Ministry of Finance, will feature a special session to examine measures taken to encourage entrepreneurship across the Kingdom. Speakers will include Nawaf bin Ataf Al-Sahaf, CEO of the «Bader» program, and Craig Smith, CEO of Dhahran Valley Technology Development Company.
The conference will be opened by Minister of Finance Mohammed Al-Jadaan, who will deliver the keynote address and inaugurate the accompanying exhibition. The list of prominent speakers from the Kingdom includes: Dr. Ahmed Al-Khalifi, Governor of the Saudi Arabian Monetary Authority; Majid Al-Hogail, Minister of Housing; Mohammed Al-Qweiz, Vice Chairman of the Capital Market Authority; Khalid Al-Hassan, CEO of the Saudi Stock Exchange (Tadawul); and Yousef Al-Banyan, CEO and Vice Chairman of SABIC.
