Riyadh – Mubasher: The Saudi Stock Exchange (Tadawul) plans to increase foreign ownership of equities to more than 25% by 2020 instead of 4% this year, said head of Tadawul's markets department Khaled al-Hosan.
It is expected that foreign equity ownership on the Tadawul may reach 20% or 25% in the coming two years, Al-Hosan told Bloomberg.
“The bourse currently has about 120 registered Qualified Foreign Investors -- who are allowed to trade Saudi stocks directly,” Al Hosan noted.
Moreover, the kingdom's stock market is working on reviewing 180 other applications, the top official said.
“We are telling global investors that our markets are open and are consistently encouraging them to invest with us.” Al Hosan added.
He affirmed that the Saudi bourse is ready for the initial public offering (IPO) of Aramco and doesn't see any liquidity concerns arising from it, according to Bloomberg.
Qatar Foundation International's (QFI) applications levelled up significantly in the two weeks followed the crackdown, the head of Tadawul's markets department said.
