CI Capital, the leading diversified financial services group, announced Sunday that it has entered into an agreement with Al Rajhi Capital (ARC), the fully-owned banking subsidiary of Al Rajhi Bank, a leading brokerage house in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (KSA), that provides access to the Saudi equity capital market to CI Capital's client base. The agreement is aligned with CI Capital's ongoing, ambitious plan to conclude bilateral agreements with key financial institutions that will help create a solid regional platform that delivers integrated and effective solutions to all their clients. The new partnership will leverage both firms' growing reach and the breadth of their offerings in both the Saudi & Egyptian equity markets. As one of the leading capital market players in Saudi Arabia, ARC is keen on facilitating investor access to equity markets, both directly and through partnerships with other leading firms. ARC believes that the launch of this partnership with CI Capital will pave the way, allowing sophisticated global institutional clients access to unparalleled service, with a unique local perspective in both markets, in a timely fashion. Karim Khadr, the managing director of CI Capital's head of brokerage, noted, "the partnership is not only a key milestone in our brokerage regional expansion strategy, but more importantly, serves as a vital entry point for our clients to the KSA, the Middle East's largest exchange. Saudi Arabia represents 40.7% of total MENA market capitalisation and maintains its ambitious plans to upgrade its market infrastructure and open up its stock market to foreign investors." Khadr added that, "the partnership offers access & execution opportunities for our institutional clients and capitalises on our ability to deliver fully integrated and streamlined solutions." Both firms are among the MENA region's largest brokerage houses and have a proven track record of structuring and executing large, complex transactions. The firm operates regionally from 20 offices across the KSA, and employs over 250 investment professionals. CI Capital's brokerage division is one of Egypt's leading brokerage houses and currently ranks second, with an overall market share of 11% and more than a 30% share of all institutional trading on the Egyptian Exchange as of 2016.
