Saudi to open capital markets to all foreigners after Tasi drop

• Saudi worst-performing GCC market in 2025
• Rule change to ease flow of global money
• Move takes effect from February 1

Saudi Arabia will open its capital markets to all foreign investors from February 1, easing the flow of global money to support its underperforming assets.

The move coincides with a slump on Tuesday in the Tadawul All-Share Index (Tasi), which tracks the country’s main market, to its lowest closing level since March 2023.

The Saudi market watchdog approved regulations that were floated in October to scrap qualifications needed by foreign investors to participate in the main market, the latest in a string of steps designed to boost investment from abroad.

“Accordingly, the capital market, across all its segments, will be accessible to various categories of investors from around the world for direct participation,” the Capital Markets Authority said in a statement on Tuesday.

The CMA also scrapped the regulatory framework governing swap agreements, which allowed non-resident foreign investors to obtain financial exposure to listed securities without directly owning them.

The CMA said international investors’ ownership in the capital market exceeded SAR590 billion ($157 billion) by the end of the third quarter of 2025.

Global investments in the main market reached SAR519 billion by the end of September 2025, up from SAR498 billion during the whole of 2024.

In January last year, the CMA started allowing international investors to buy shares in companies with property developments in the holy cities of Mecca and Medina.

Saudi stocks briefly surged in September following reports, since confirmed, that the CMA was considering easing a 49 percent cap on foreign ownership of listed companies.

However, the Saudi Exchange was by far the worst-performing GCC market in 2025, falling more than 12 percent. The second-worst performer in the region, the Qatar Stock Exchange, added 2 percent, while the Muscat bourse rose 30 percent.

Saudi stocks rebounded on Wednesday morning, with the Tasi up more than 1 percent.

Further reading:

• Saudi Arabia’s policy trilemma: Oil, debt and deficits in 2026
• Year-end Saudi IPO sprint raises hopes for 2026
• Matein Khalid’s take: where to invest in 2026

Investment manager Riyad Capital said it expects the Saudi market to experience bullish sentiment in 2026, primarily driven by liberalisation of the foreign-ownership limit.

Declines in oil prices weighed on Tasi’s 2025 performance, Riyad Capital said.

According to a report by the Saudi Exchange, market capitalisation at the end of 2025 reached SAR882 trillion, dropping 14 percent year on year.

The value of shares traded reached SAR130 trillion in 2025, down 30 percent year on year. The total volume of shares stood at 57.11 billion, down 17 percent.