Sports deal strengthens Yasir al-Rumayyan’s reputation at Saudi wealth fund

Months before Newcastle United return to Europe’s top football competition, the Champions League, after two decades, Yasir Al-Rumayyan drives the team to his Riyadh residence for a December pep talk.

It was more than a year after the club was taken over by Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund, and the 53-year-old PIF chief and Newcastle chair rallied the players with a speech before a game of mock golf.

While Newcastle was experiencing a change in its fortunes, Roumayan’s other major sporting venture, the upstart LIV Golf Tour, was struggling to attract sponsors and clashed with the US PGA in the legal courts. Rumayan’s personal passion, a foray into golf, was not looking promising.

The announcement this month that the LIV and the PGA were joining forces, with Roumayan as chairman, took many observers by surprise. While the plan still faces hurdles, including scrutiny from US lawmakers, it has elevated Roumayan’s reputation as one of the world’s most influential sovereign wealth fund heads.

A confidante of Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, Rumayan is charged with overseeing the investments and reforms that are dear to the royal. Some attribute his rising profile to acting as yes-man to the ruler, others to his management skills and the occasional stroke of luck.

The 2021 decision to set up LIV was “a crazy idea, it was such a long shot”, recalled a former Saudi aide familiar with his career. “But if God is smiling on you. . . .

Born in the Saudi province of Al-Qassim, Rumayyan graduated from a local university before going into banking. He worked his way up at Saudi Hollande Bank before a stint at the Capital Markets Authority. He was leading financial services provider Saudi Franchi Capital until 2015, when then-deputy Crown Prince Mohammed tapped him for the PIF.

“I didn’t know him at all. . . . I thought it was going to be an interview, but it was like, ‘Here’s what I want you to do,'” Rumayan said in a 2020 interview with Bloomberg. Said.

As governor of the PIF, Rumayan oversees $650bn in assets, including a $45bn bet on Japanese technology conglomerate SoftBank’s Vision Fund, $20bn in the Blackstone Infrastructure Fund and a stake in Uber, which has made him the ride-hailing conglomerate. Gave a seat on the board. before stepping down to focus on other commitments.

He is also chairman of Saudi Aramco, a job he took as the state oil company was preparing for an initial public offering, the proceeds of which would go to the fund, which also transferred 8 percent of the company. .

A foreign executive said that Rumayan’s diary was so crowded that when he sought a meeting with the PIF chief, he was given 15 minutes for more than three months.

Navigating domestic affairs can be their biggest challenge as well as their riskiest. Rumayan’s role as governor of the investment fund, headed by Crown Prince Mohammed, puts him at the forefront of the kingdom’s drive to diversify its economy beyond oil.

In Saudi Arabia, ministers and people from Rumayyyan often have a short shelf life. The Crown Prince turns them around at will and is intolerant of mistakes or those who stand in his way.

The PIF-led reforms include a host of huge projects and investments in nascent industries ranging from electric vehicles to gaming and vapes, which are seen by the crown prince as key to winning support at home as he seeks to ultimately succeed his father, King Salman. Get ready for. said the Western diplomat.

Rumayan has received both praise and criticism for the PIF’s domestic activities, which have ousted private sector actors to spur backward sectors such as housing, building national champion companies.

He has defeated many colleagues. His secret? Quoting an Arab proverb, the former Saudi aide said, “God has mercy on a person who knows his limits.”

Some people familiar with the PIF say that the Rumayayan represents the day-to-day affairs of the fund and its growing empire. He is also close to outside advisers such as Wall Street dealmaker Michael Klein.

“This is typical Saudi leadership,” said a former senior official at the fund. “You surround yourself with people, and it’s a top-down leadership. You take orders and try to execute, and where you don’t know, you bring in consultants.

According to the former aide, Rumayan is open to mentors. “Every top banker in the world is fighting to advise him,” he said. “He listens to it, and he’s a hard worker.”

A bon vivant, he has hosted dinner parties at his home on the eve of the “Davos in the Desert” summit of the Future Investment Initiative, organized by the PIF, which seeks to project the new Saudi Arabia to the global elite.

Those who know him say that Rumaiyaan is amiable as well as amiable and obliging in a crowd of journalists and businessmen. With his curly hair, Roman nose and tailored suit, he cuts a distinctive figure when he shows up to cheer Newcastle at St James’ Park.

But he was never regarded as any kind of business or networking genius, several people who have known him from his banking days told the Financial Times.

That he has managed to influence Prince Mohammed and win his confidence has baffled some observers.

“He’s a nice guy (but) I’m surprised he got the job,” said a banker who has met him over the years.

Others see her rise as a measure of viability and readiness to please the crown prince. An adviser joked with him that he had a warm relationship with Prince Mohammed. But he remains respectful.

“To go somewhere in that part of the world you have to be at least somewhat familiar with how things are going,” said the former PIF official.

Rumayan’s advisor said he was intrigued by the scale of the prince’s transformation project for the kingdom, challenging bankers’ skepticism and encouraging more ambitious proposals to satisfy his boss.

Supporters say Rumayan deserves credit for his achievements.

“Yasir has a track record of doing better than everybody expected,” said an executive of a company that works with PIF. “In the beginning wasn’t it unusual for people to say ‘really? when they met him. But he has some talent, he’s flexible and doesn’t take himself too seriously.

Additional reporting by Simeon Kerr in Dubai

Months before Newcastle United return to Europe’s top football competition, the Champions League, after two decades, Yasir Al-Rumayyan drives the team to his Riyadh residence for a December pep talk.

It was more than a year after the club was taken over by Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund, and the 53-year-old PIF chief and Newcastle chair rallied the players with a speech before a game of mock golf.

While Newcastle was experiencing a change in its fortunes, Roumayan’s other major sporting venture, the upstart LIV Golf Tour, was struggling to attract sponsors and clashed with the US PGA in the legal courts. Rumayan’s personal passion, a foray into golf, was not looking promising.

The announcement this month that the LIV and the PGA were joining forces, with Roumayan as chairman, took many observers by surprise. While the plan still faces hurdles, including scrutiny from US lawmakers, it has elevated Roumayan’s reputation as one of the world’s most influential sovereign wealth fund heads.

A confidante of Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, Rumayan is charged with overseeing the investments and reforms that are dear to the royal. Some attribute his rising profile to acting as yes-man to the ruler, others to his management skills and the occasional stroke of luck.

The 2021 decision to set up LIV was “a crazy idea, it was such a long shot”, recalled a former Saudi aide familiar with his career. “But if God is smiling on you. . . .

Born in the Saudi province of Al-Qassim, Rumayyan graduated from a local university before going into banking. He worked his way up at Saudi Hollande Bank before a stint at the Capital Markets Authority. He was leading financial services provider Saudi Franchi Capital until 2015, when then-deputy Crown Prince Mohammed tapped him for the PIF.

“I didn’t know him at all. . . . I thought it was going to be an interview, but it was like, ‘Here’s what I want you to do,'” Rumayan said in a 2020 interview with Bloomberg. Said.

As governor of the PIF, Rumayan oversees $650bn in assets, including a $45bn bet on Japanese technology conglomerate SoftBank’s Vision Fund, $20bn in the Blackstone Infrastructure Fund and a stake in Uber, which has made him the ride-hailing conglomerate. Gave a seat on the board. before stepping down to focus on other commitments.

He is also chairman of Saudi Aramco, a job he took as the state oil company was preparing for an initial public offering, the proceeds of which would go to the fund, which also transferred 8 percent of the company. .

A foreign executive said that Rumayan’s diary was so crowded that when he sought a meeting with the PIF chief, he was given 15 minutes for more than three months.

Navigating domestic affairs can be their biggest challenge as well as their riskiest. Rumayan’s role as governor of the investment fund, headed by Crown Prince Mohammed, puts him at the forefront of the kingdom’s drive to diversify its economy beyond oil.

In Saudi Arabia, ministers and people from Rumayyyan often have a short shelf life. The Crown Prince turns them around at will and is intolerant of mistakes or those who stand in his way.

The PIF-led reforms include a host of huge projects and investments in nascent industries ranging from electric vehicles to gaming and vapes, which are seen by the crown prince as key to winning support at home as he seeks to ultimately succeed his father, King Salman. Get ready for. said the Western diplomat.

Rumayan has received both praise and criticism for the PIF’s domestic activities, which have ousted private sector actors to spur backward sectors such as housing, building national champion companies.

He has defeated many colleagues. His secret? Quoting an Arab proverb, the former Saudi aide said, “God has mercy on a person who knows his limits.”

Some people familiar with the PIF say that the Rumayayan represents the day-to-day affairs of the fund and its growing empire. He is also close to outside advisers such as Wall Street dealmaker Michael Klein.

“This is typical Saudi leadership,” said a former senior official at the fund. “You surround yourself with people, and it’s a top-down leadership. You take orders and try to execute, and where you don’t know, you bring in consultants.

According to the former aide, Rumayan is open to mentors. “Every top banker in the world is fighting to advise him,” he said. “He listens to it, and he’s a hard worker.”

A bon vivant, he has hosted dinner parties at his home on the eve of the “Davos in the Desert” summit of the Future Investment Initiative, organized by the PIF, which seeks to project the new Saudi Arabia to the global elite.

Those who know him say that Rumaiyaan is amiable as well as amiable and obliging in a crowd of journalists and businessmen. With his curly hair, Roman nose and tailored suit, he cuts a distinctive figure when he shows up to cheer Newcastle at St James’ Park.

But he was never regarded as any kind of business or networking genius, several people who have known him from his banking days told the Financial Times.

That he has managed to influence Prince Mohammed and win his confidence has baffled some observers.

“He’s a nice guy (but) I’m surprised he got the job,” said a banker who has met him over the years.

Others see her rise as a measure of viability and readiness to please the crown prince. An adviser joked with him that he had a warm relationship with Prince Mohammed. But he remains respectful.

“To go somewhere in that part of the world you have to be at least somewhat familiar with how things are going,” said the former PIF official.

Rumayan’s advisor said he was intrigued by the scale of the prince’s transformation project for the kingdom, challenging bankers’ skepticism and encouraging more ambitious proposals to satisfy his boss.

Supporters say Rumayan deserves credit for his achievements.

“Yasir has a track record of doing better than everybody expected,” said an executive of a company that works with PIF. “In the beginning wasn’t it unusual for people to say ‘really? when they met him. But he has some talent, he’s flexible and doesn’t take himself too seriously.

Additional reporting by Simeon Kerr in Dubai