Multiple sources are reporting this morning that Saudi Arabian billionaire Prince Alwaleed bin Talal has invested $500 million in General Motors stock and according to a statement made by Alwaleed’s investment firm Kingdom Holding, this amounts to roughly a 1% stake in the company. Kingdom Holding did not reveal how they came to the claim of 1% nor did they say how many shares were purchased.
Alwaleed’s Kingdom Holding has a wide range of investments around the world, with major names like Disney and Citibank already on the list. As GM has spent some time traveling and promoting the benefits of purchasing company stock, they have put some time into the cash-laden Middle East but so far, Kingdom Holding is the only company reporting an investment in the American automaker.
General Motor’s initial public offering (IPO) hit the market this past Thursday, with a reported $15.6 billion dollars being raised through the sale of common and preferred stock – some of which was previously owned by the US government via the “bailout”.