Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman finally saw Saudi Aramco reaching the US$2 trillion valuation he has sought for years. Yet, this record-breaking valuation , achieved on the second day of trading of Aramco’s stock on the Saudi Stock Exchange last week, doesn’t help the Crown Prince’s efforts to raise more funds for the Vision 2030 to create “a vibrant society, a thriving economy and an ambitious nation.” Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, commonly referred to as MbS, will have to turn to other sources of funds to finance Vision 2030 because Saudi Aramco’s IPO turned out to be a much smaller and predominantly domestic affair compared to the initial grand plans. If the Saudis want to squeeze more money, and quickly, out of Aramco, they are more likely to turn to the bond market for a huge bond amount of around US$20 billion instead of trying to list the […]