What the Kushner fund in Israel will do with Saudi money
The private equity fund of Jared Kushner, Trump's son-in-law and former White House adviser, is working on a large investment by the Saudi Arabian sovereign in Israeli startups. All the details
Affinity Partners, the new private-equity fund of Jared Kushner (entrepreneur and son-in-law of former US president Donald Trump, of whom he was an advisor), intends to invest large sums of Saudi capital in Israeli startups. The Wall Street Journal writes it on the basis of information received from anonymous sources, speaking of the news as a signal of the improvement of relations between Riyadh and Tel Aviv, "two historical rivals".
OVER 3 BILLION DOLLARS
Affinity Partners has already selected the first two Israeli companies that will receive the funding: there is talk of over 3 billion dollars in total, of which 2 from the sovereign fund of Saudi Arabia. If the transaction were to take place, it would be the first time that the Saudi fund has invested its assets in Israel. And it would constitute proof – explains the newspaper – “of the kingdom's growing willingness to do business with the country, even if they have no diplomatic relations”.
The investment could therefore contribute to a political rapprochement and, ultimately, to a pact for the normalization of relations.
ISRAEL AND THE AGREEMENTS OF ABRAHAM
In recent years, Israel has already normalized bilateral relations with various Arab countries, such as the United Arab Emirates: the reference context is that of the so-called Abrahamic Agreements, or the Middle Eastern architecture created by the Trump administration (Kushner's contribution was fundamental ) to foster contacts between Israel and the Gulf monarchies and contain Iran. Tel Aviv would like Riyadh to enter the Abrahamic Agreements , which would formalize that de facto alliance that has existed for years – but kept secret – based on the shared will to oppose Tehran.
THE PLAN OF JARED KUSHNER
Since leaving the White House, Jared Kushner has used his contacts in the Middle East – he is very attached to the Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, for example – to further the growth of his private-equity firm. In addition to investing in startups, Saudi Arabia could also open its market to Israeli companies: all thanks to the mediation of Kushner , who would have tried to persuade Riyadh not to foreclose on business opportunities. in the "Silicon Valley of the Middle East", that is Israel.
In an interview, Kushner said he views his investment promotion work as an extension of his White House work for advancing relations between Israel and Arab countries. "If we can get the Israelis and Muslims in the region to do business together, people will focus on shared interests and values," he said. "We have initiated a historic regional change that must be strengthened and nurtured to reach its potential," he added, referring to the Abrahamic Agreements.
THE APPROVAL OF MBS
The Wall Street Journal specifies that the identity of the Israeli companies in which Affinity Partners will invest is not known. And remember that Prince Mohammed bin Salman, as president, will have to personally approve every direct investment in Israel by the Public Investment Fund, the $ 600 billion Saudi fund.
The goal of Riyadh, promoted by bin Salman, is to transform its economy through investments in new industries that reduce its dependence on oil: one of the most important projects is that of Neom, the futurist city-state of 500 billion dollars, and Israeli companies could contribute to its development through investments in cybersecurity and biotechnology. In November 2020, bin Salman met the then Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in Neom; the contrasts between the Saudi kingdom and the current American administration of Joe Biden have however slowed the political progress between Riyadh and Tel Aviv.
INVESTMENTS IN THE UNITED ARAB EMIRATES
Already the Emirati investment company Mubadala Investment Company, a sort of sovereign fund of Abu Dhabi, has invested 20 million dollars in six Israeli companies; another UAE fund, ADQ, has invested 105 million in Aleph Farms, an Israeli company that develops meat in the laboratory.
AFTER SAUDI ARABIA, INDONESIA?
According to the Wall Street Journal , Affinity Partners is seeking to encourage Israeli technology investments in Indonesia, the country with the largest Muslim population in the world. Before leaving the White House, Kushner was working on a diplomatic normalization agreement between Israel and Indonesia.
This is a machine translation from Italian language of a post published on Start Magazine at the URL https://www.startmag.it/mondo/jared-kushner-investimenti-arabia-saudita-israele/ on Mon, 09 May 2022 08:25:14 +0000.