Abu Dhabi, has invested around the world, buying a 75% stake in New York's iconic Chrysler Building last summer when oil prices were at their peak and helping to bail out the financial giant Citigroup with $7.5 billion at the end of 2007.
For Prince Walid, the developments at Citigroup are a stinging embarrassment. In November, he made a public splash by increasing his Citigroup stake, thus becoming its largest shareholder when the government carried out its second financial rescue.
But Prince Walid and several other investors from the Middle East and Asia, including the Abu Dhabi investment fund, are now suffering the public embarrassment of seeing their investments in Citigroup evaporate. With their ties to the royal families of their respective countries — Prince Walid is the grandson of Saudi Arabia’s founding king, Abdul-Aziz Ibn Saud, and the Abu Dhabi Investment Authority invests the surplus cash of Abu Dhabi’s kingdom — these two investors are among the world’s most influential.
Citigroup is close to a pact to boost the U.S. Government's stake in the failing bank to as much as 40%; Vikram Pandit's job, however, should be safe. [WSJ, NYP]
Well thank goodness Mr. Pandit’s job is safe! But, who are we bailing out here? Citigroup or Abu Dhabi?
Bill
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