IslamicFinance.de

The idea of privatizing Saudi Aramco, the national hydrocarbons giant in Saudi Arabia, appears to have re-kindled the privatization fire in the Middle East. While the announcement of what could theoretically be the largest initial public offering (IPO) ever envisaged startled even seasoned market observers, its modalities and timeline remain unclear. Indeed, privatization was not on the agenda of regional governments until a few months ago, when the fiscal situation of some Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) countries started to deteriorate due to falling oil prices. The last few years have witnessed a virtual halt in privatization activity across the Arab world due to bad experiences with previous experiments and the perception of corruption and insider dealings.