Saudi Tadawul Group signs deal to implement ESG framework in capital market

The operator of the Saudi stock market, Saudi Tadawul Group, has signed a trilateral memorandum of understanding with the Ministry of Planning and Economy and the Capital Market Authority to help the group implement environmental, social and governance framework in the capital market.

This was disclosed by the group’s CEO Khalid Al-Hussan on Monday. In an exclusive interview with Arab News on the sidelines of the two-day Capital Market Forum in Riyadh, the top official said the MoU signed with the top authorities focussed on the “sustainability and ESG framework” that we want to implement in the Kingdom’s capital market.

“That includes several aspects of the taxonomy set up for the Saudi market and the approach toward how we can enable Saudi corporates as well as investors to access this information,” Al-Hussan added.

The Tadawul chief also confirmed signing cooperation deals with other Gulf bourses. The latest was signed with Qatar exchange on the first day of the forum.

Al-Hussan said with the signing of a deal with Qatar, “we concluded signing MoUs with all the GCC exchanges.”

During the event, Saudi Tadawul Group also signed an MoU with the Singapore Exchange, Al-Hussan highlighted.

“These MoUs are more specifically focused on finding ways at enabling integration, specifically in the area of cross-listing or dual listings between these exchanges,” he added.

Usually, MoUs are just a means of opening a discussion with the other party. Then, if things materialize as a result of the MoU, an official agreement and linkage follow, Al-Hussan clarified.

“This is like what happened with the Abu Dhabi exchange,” he added.