FIVE BY CAPITALSA
MONDAY, 9 NOVEMBER 2026
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Today’s Five
PRIVATE CAPITAL
PIF goes from nothing back to first in line.PLUS · SOCIETY
Is Al Ittihad going back to Jeddah money?
01 / SECURITY
From Riyadh, on a heavier Monday than most.
For weeks, the war has mostly been something Riyadh's offices worked around. On Sunday, it hit one of them.
Debris from an attempted attack damaged Aramco's tower in King Abdullah Financial District, the Energy Ministry said. Damage was limited and no one was hurt.
Windows were blown out across several floors, Reuters reported, citing a witness. The Saudi-led coalition said it intercepted two missiles fired by Yemen's Houthis.
The timing: it was the first day Riyadh's schools went back to in-person classes after three weeks of remote learning.
Wider alerts: Civil Defense also briefly warned residents of Buqayq, home to Aramco's Abqaiq oil processing plant, as well as Al-Ahsa and Dammam, before saying the danger had passed.
Why it matters: KAFD is home to the Saudi Exchange, PIF and the regional headquarters global firms were asked to set up in Riyadh. A strike there brings the conflict into the offices of the very companies the kingdom is trying to attract.
What to watch: whether offices in KAFD and nearby towers send staff home again, and how markets react today.
02 / PRIVATE CAPITAL
A month ago, Saudi Arabia's sovereign wealth fund was set to walk away from LIV Golf with nothing. Now the league's collapse has put it first in line to get money back.
LIV told a New Jersey bankruptcy court on Thursday that it was dropping its "LIV 2.0" relaunch and winding down instead. Its wind-down plan is due today.
What changed: under the old plan, PIF's stake and loans would have been cancelled and it would have owned none of the new league. In a wind-down, secured lenders are paid first, and PIF lent LIV nearly $500 million in June.
A buyer at the door: London buyout firm BC Partners wants to buy the roughly $50 million bankruptcy loan PIF extended to LIV, the Financial Times reported on Sunday. Whoever holds that loan steers the bankruptcy.
Why it matters: PIF spent most of its $5 billion building the league, paying players and funding prize money. None of that comes back. Repaying the loans is about limiting the damage, not winning.
What to watch: today's filing, and whether PIF sells its loan and steps away.
A GOOD BRIEFING TRAVELS
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THE CLOSE · IN ONE MINUTE
Hanging On to 10,000
The Saudi market slipped on Sunday but kept its hold on 10,000. The TASI fell 0.78% to 10,016.92, with 2.7 billion Riyal ($732 million) changing hands, Argaam reported.
A close call: the index dipped as low as 9,985 during the day before finishing back above the line.
Banks did the damage: the sector fell 1.6%, with Al Rajhi down 1.5% and SNB down 1.3%. Telecoms lost 1.4%.
Calmer underneath: more stocks actually rose than fell, 142 to 131. Saudi German Health and carpet maker Naseej both hit the 10% daily limit, the hospital group after swinging to a third-quarter profit of 36.7 million Riyal.
Builders split: developer Retal jumped 5.35% on a weak day for real estate, while Umm Al Qura Cement fell 3%.
Still red for 2026: the index is down about 4.5% this year.
03 / ENERGY
Saudi Arabia's two big drillers had a good Sunday.
Arabian Drilling swung back to profit in the third quarter, earning 31.4 million Riyal ($8.4 million) after a loss of about the same size in the second quarter, the company reported. Its shares jumped 5.6%.
Where it came from: offshore rigs suspended because of the war went back to work, alongside cost cuts and lower finance costs. Over nine months, though, profit is still down 91% and revenue is down 8%.
Abroad: ADES said India's state oil company ONGC hired two of its older rigs for three years each, in deals worth about $117 million. It's ADES's third overseas contract in under two weeks.
Why it matters: more than 90% of the world's jack-up rigs are under contract, so even older rigs are finding long-term work. Arabian Drilling's backlog stood at about $3.1 billion at mid-year.
What to watch: whether the fourth quarter, the first full one with the rigs back, keeps the recovery going.
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DATA POINT
$6 billion
That's how much Saudi government debt index-tracking funds may need to buy once J.P. Morgan adds riyal sukuk to its benchmark, by CapitalSA's calculation.
MARKET CLOSE · NOV 8
10,016.92 ▼ 0.78%
Tadawul All Share Index (TASI)
TOP GAINERS
Naseej · SR11.44 ▲ 10.00%
Saudi German Health · SR25.24 ▲ 9.98%
CGS · SR7.42 ▲ 9.93%
TOP LOSERS
FIPCO · SR36.50 ▼ 6.55%
SMC Healthcare · SR12.50 ▼ 4.87%
Raydan · SR14.56 ▼ 4.77%
Source: Saudi Exchange
04 / MARKETS
Global bond funds are about to become steady buyers of Saudi government debt. It comes as the kingdom borrows more to cover a wider budget gap.
J.P. Morgan said riyal government sukuk will join its emerging-market local-currency bond index from Jan. 29, 2027, phased in over 10 months.
The numbers: eight sukuk worth about $79 billion qualify. Saudi Arabia will end up with a 2.71% weight, higher than the 2.52% first flagged in April.
Why it matters: about $233 billion tracks the index, and those funds have to buy what's in it. That works out to more than $6 billion of Saudi debt. More buyers usually means cheaper borrowing, which the kingdom needs as its deficit runs past forecast.
The market: Saudi stocks fell 0.78% on Sunday, dragged by banks and telecoms. Arabian Drilling was among the day's biggest gainers.
What to watch: today's open, after Sunday's attack in KAFD.
05 / DEALS
Saudi Arabia's sovereign wealth fund has bought into the UAE's first stock-market listing of the year. It's one of the clearest signs yet that business ties between Riyadh and Abu Dhabi are mending.
PIF was among the global investors in DIP Holding's $529 million IPO, alongside a unit of Blackstone, Bloomberg reported. The shares start trading in Dubai on Wednesday.
What PIF is buying: DIP owns Dubai Investments Park, a 23-million-square-meter industrial and logistics zone that's 99.9% occupied. It plans to pay about $190 million in dividends for 2026.
Why it matters: the stake is small, but it gives PIF a slice of a logistics hub just as Saudi Arabia builds its own zones to compete for the same tenants.
What to watch: Wednesday's first trade. DIP priced in the middle of its range, while recent UAE deals priced at the top.
PLUS / SOCIETY
Saudi football fans have a new favourite argument: who's buying their club? For Jeddah's Al Ittihad, the answer may be a family with deep roots in the stands.
A group led by Abdulrahman and Sultan bin Mahfouz is the frontrunner to buy the club from PIF, sports daily Al-Riyadiyah reported on Saturday. The brothers are sons of the late banker Khalid bin Mahfouz, a former honorary member of Al Ittihad.
The money behind the bid: the group pairs Sidra Capital, the Jeddah asset manager owned by the family's Al Murjan Group, with UAE-based BlueFive Capital. The two are already tied together: BlueFive bought a large stake in Sidra, now renamed BlueFiveSidra, and Al Murjan bought into BlueFive's Islamic investment arm.
The rivals: Manchester United's American owners, the Glazer family, are bidding with businessman Wael Jamjoom. Prince Saad bin Abdullah has teamed up with Josh Harris, co-owner of Crystal Palace. The bin Mahfouz group reportedly put in the highest offer.
Not so fast: none of this is confirmed. Sources told Asharq Al-Awsat that all three bids are in the final stage and close in value, and Okaz reported that a decision could slip to the end of 2027.
The price to beat: Kingdom Holding paid 840 million Riyal ($224 million) for 70% of Al Hilal, valuing the club at about $370 million. The deal closed in September, with PIF keeping 30%.
Across town: Al Nassr could be next. PIF took full ownership in August. RedBird, the owner of AC Milan, says it's in "preliminary" talks for a stake, with Ronaldo tipped to take 20%. The catch is more than $210 million of debt.
Why it matters: PIF bought the big four clubs in 2023 to build the league. Now it's handing them to private money, and each sale sets the price of Saudi sport.
What to watch: whether PIF names a preferred bidder for Al Ittihad, and whether Al Nassr's debt pushes its price below Al Hilal's.
THE WEEK AHEAD
What We’re Watching
Today / Golf. LIV Golf files its wind-down plan in a US court.
Through Wednesday / Pilgrims. Jeddah hosts the Hajj Conference and Exhibition.
Wednesday / Listings. DIP Holding debuts in Dubai, with PIF among its new shareholders.
Wednesday, 25 November / Dividend. Aramco pays its $21.9 billion base dividend.
BEFORE YOU GO
Business, Uninterrupted?
Sunday showed both sides of doing business in Saudi Arabia right now. Drillers are back at work, foreign bond funds are lining up, and PIF is placing bets abroad.
At the same time, a tower in the heart of the financial district lost its windows. The deals keep coming. The question is how close the war can get before they slow.
Have a good week.
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