Saudi Prince acquires a 5 percent stake in Lucid Motors

Prince Alwaleed bin Talal Al Saud, a member of the Saudi royal family, has acquired a 5% stake in electric vehicle manufacturer Lucid Motors. According to official documents submitted to the US Securities and Exchange Commission, the billionaire prince has registered more than 19 million shares in his name. This step further increases the Kingdom's total participation in this electric vehicle enterprise. This is reported by Techcrunch.com reports .

According to information distributed by ixbt.com and TechCrunch publications, the purchase coincided with a period when Lucid Motors' market value dropped below USD 2 billion. On July 14 of this year, a well-known electric vehicle blog reported that the company might face bankruptcy or be privatized by Saudi Arabia's sovereign wealth fund. Following this, Lucid's leadership strictly denied these rumors, and the company's share price subsequently recovered.

Structural changes in the company and leadership response

According to a statement by Lucid Motors Chief Communications Officer Nick Twork, the company does not comment on individual investors' personal decisions, but highly appreciates the expressed independent trust. This share transaction coincided with a major restructuring and simplification process initiated by Lucid's new CEO, Silvio Napoli. In particular, in June, the number of employees was reduced by 18% in order to cut costs.

Recall that the Public Investment Fund (PIF) of Saudi Arabia has been the main shareholder of Lucid Motors since 2018. At that time, Saudi officials abandoned the plan to privatize Tesla and directed funds to this startup. Since the electric vehicle enterprise merged with a special purpose company and entered the stock market in 2021, PIF has owned approximately a 60% stake.

Technological investments of the Arabian Warren Buffett

The wealth fund owned by the Saudi Arabian government has remained the main source of financial support for Lucid Motors in recent years. At a time when the enterprise is struggling to find mass buyers in the US and international markets, the Saudis have been regularly buying shares and allocating billions of dollars in loans. The new purchase once again practically demonstrated the royal elite's confidence in the future of this brand.

Prince Alwaleed bin Talal has extensive experience investing in major US tech projects through his holding company. He was once one of the main shareholders of Twitter. In 2022, when Elon Musk tried to buy the social network, although he initially resisted, he later changed his position, supported Musk, and became the second largest shareholder after the deal. Often called the "Arabian Warren Buffett" on his official website, the investor also holds stakes in Snap and Deezer.