King Abdullah Financial District set for Phase One launch
RIYADH, November 25, 2017
The first phase of the King Abdullah Financial District project is due to be launched next year with plans to host the G-20 meeting there in 2020, reported Arab News.
A $10-billion business hub coming up in Riyadh, King Abdullah Financial District has been under construction since 2006, and will soon get a fresh lease of life under the management of the kingdom’s sovereign wealth fund, it stated.
The Public Investment Fund (PIF) has finalised a deal to take over the management of the King Abdullah Financial District from the Public Pension Agency, stated the report citing Bloomberg.
The Saudi Vision 2030 economic reform plan outlines details for the rehabilitation of the capital’s financial district, which is to be an economic free zone with visa exemptions and a direct connection to the airport, it added.
While details of the deal have yet to emerge, Hilmi Ghosheh, who acts as an adviser for PIF’s real estate projects, is reportedly set to manage the completion of the development, said the report.
The government is now exploring new incentive options to attract financial institutions to occupy space in the district.
Decade-long tax breaks for banks are among the ideas circulating to help populate the 73-building development, which has been restructured to reduce office space and increase the number of residential units, the report added.
