BACK ON TOP

Prince Alwaleed Bin Talal Alsaud, Founder and Chairman of Saudi Arabia's Kingdom Holding Company and the richest Arab businessman in the world with a net worth of $16.5 billion, has his eyes firmly set on Al's impact, Saudi Arabia's evolution, and the world's trade wars.

- CLAUDINE COLETTI

It’s a hot and hazy afternoon in Saudi Arabia in April, and Prince Alwaleed Bin Talal Alsaud, Founder and Chairman of Kingdom Holding Company, and one of the Middle East’s most recognised and renowned investors, is sat where he belongs: at the top of the Kingdom Centre skyscraper in Riyadh, where his sprawling offices lie, and at the top of Forbes Middle East’s Arab billionaires list, where he has been noticeably absent for the last seven years. With Saudi Arabian billionaires once again featuring among Forbes' list of the world’s richest people for the first time since 2017, the prince is courteous about the comeback. “Better late than never,” he reasons.

Floor 66 of the Kingdom Centre is not your average workplace. Flags and floor-to-ceiling pictures of Alwaleed shaking hands with the world’s most senior royals, diplomats, presidents, and prime ministers emblazon high walls, tables teeming with awards and recognitions cover the floor, and expansive conference tables fill two meeting rooms bookending the foyer, both featuring large-scale models of Kingdom Holding’s up-coming Jeddah Tower, which is set to be the tallest building in the world at one kilometer high when complete.

From the viewpoint of his private office, Prince Alwaleed oversees his philanthropy company, Alwaleed Philanthropies, which he says has invested more than $5 billion into charitable endeavors; his personal assets, estimated to be worth around $7.6 billion (including jewelry worth $310 million and a private plane and yacht worth a combined $168 million); and his public investments, which as of March included $7.3 billion in Kingdom Holding, more than $3 billion in X and xAI, and $276 million in Snap. Alwaleed was worth $16.5 billion as of March 7, 2025, according to Forbes.