Consolidation of laws will help Saudi Arabia attract foreign investment: report

Consolidation of regulatory laws will help Saudi Arabia attract foreign investment and meet Vision 2030 goals, according to finance experts.

Speaking at a roundtable, organized by accountancy and finance body The Institute of Chartered Accountants in England and Wales (ICAEW), experts urged the authorities to adopt the International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRS) to attain a thriving economy.

They also discussed the various plans set in motion by the Kingdom for its Vision 2030, highlighting the particular industries facing consolidation, the merger and acquisition (M&A) activities and how they are expected to drive economic growth.

The experts also called for the Saudi Companies' Law to be amended to allow a higher ownership percentage for foreign investors, especially in the priority sectors such as the healthcare where clinics are mandated to be 100 percent owned by Saudi nationals.

Panelists also agreed that cost-cutting was essential to improve the overall performance of Saudi businesses and a major strategy to achieve this was by providing economies of scale which can be achieved in the short term through M&A route.