Saudi Arabia’s sovereign wealth fund PIF reports $11bn loss for 2022

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Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund (PIF) reported a loss on investment activities of about $11bn last year compared to a profit of $19bn in 2021 as global markets sank.

That meant the fund’s loss attributable to its owner was SAR36.6bn riyals ($9.8bn) in 2021, down from a profit of SAR81.8bn riyals, according to the wealth fund’s accounts published Tuesday. Total assets of the PIF, as the fund is known, rose to about $778bn from $676bn.

PIF said it made a 25 per cent return in 2021 as global markets rallied, roughly in line with that of investors in the S&P 500 Index that year.

PIF didn’t disclose a comparable figure in its 2022 accounts, a year when the S&P dropped almost 20 per cent. The index is up about 15 per cent so far this year.

PIF’s vast portfolio

The PIF is in the midst of a global investment spree after it was transformed from a domestically-focused holding company into a sovereign fund in 2016.

In recent months it has grabbed global attention for a deal to merge its LIV golf tournament with the PGA, part of a push by the kingdom to boost its soft power and improve its image internationally by investing in global sports.

During the course of 2022 the fund established the Sports Investment Company as a wholly owned subsidiary to invest in sports internationally and within the country. This year, the Saudi government transferred a further four per cent of energy giant Aramco — worth almost $80bn — to PIF.

The fund also manages a rough portfolio of US equities that includes stakes in Lucid Group, Activision Blizzard, and Uber Technologies.