Saudi PIF, Dubai’s Alabbar launch $1 bln e-commerce platform

Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund (PIF) has teamed up with billionaire Dubai businessman, Mohamed Alabbar, and other investors to launch Noon.com, a new e-commerce platform, with $1 billion in seed capital.

PIF will own a 50 percent stake in the platform, Alabbar told a news conference. The other 50 percent will be owned by Alabbar and other regional investors.

Noon.com will launch operations in Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates (UAE) in January, with 20 million products on the platform, Alabbar added.

Alabbar had earlier announced that an e-commerce, banking and logistics corporation will be launched in the UAE before the end of this year.

PIF, the kingdom’s largest sovereign wealth fund, and Japan-based Softbank Group in October signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) to set up a technology investment fund that could grow as large as $100 billion.