RIYADH: The global expert services and advisory firm Ankura is opening a branch in the Saudi capital, Riyadh.
The move is due to the major reforms, economic growth and availability of appropriate infrastructure in the Kingdom, Kassem Younes, the firm’s senior managing director said.
Saudi authorities and institutions are working with the US-based Ankura to build better frameworks to combat financial crimes and enhance transparency and compliance in the Kingdom.
“We often cooperate to detect a fraud when the management or the regulator suspects the occurrence of such a crime, or proactively help develop and implement better strategies for early detection and mitigation of financial crimes,” Younes told Argaam.
Companies lose more than 5 percent of their annual revenues due to fraud, he added, citing the Association of Certified Fraud Examiners.
This reflects an average loss of more than SR3.75 million ($1 million) for each fraud in the Middle East, he concluded.
Younes emphasized the location of the Saudi capital in the heart of the Kingdom, close to government agencies and the majority of large companies, as playing a key role in the decision.
This will also facilitate work with other regions in the Kingdom, with King Khalid International Airport operating several daily domestic flights, the official said.
The Washington-based company’s move comes in line with other global firms that have relocated to Riyadh amid the Kingdom’s goal to make it the region’s hub for international companies.
The Royal Commission for Riyadh City has set a target of encouraging up to 500 foreign companies to establish regional headquarters in the Kingdom over the next 10 years.
Twenty-four international firms officially signed agreements on Feb. 3, 2021 to set up their regional offices in Riyadh, part of the government’s wider plan to create 35,000 new jobs for Saudi nationals and boost the national economy by up to SR70 billion ($18.67 billion) by 2030.
A total of 44 multinational companies received licenses in October 2021 to move their regional headquarters to Riyadh, the RCRC said in a statement.
The licenses were issued at the 5th edition of the Future Investment Initiative, FII, through the Regional Headquarters Attraction Program of Multinational Companies, providing these companies direct access to the region’s largest economy, the RCRC said.
The full scope of the program makes it attractive for multinational companies and their current and prospective employees, as well as their families, to relocate to Saudi Arabia, the Commission added.