Goldman, HSBC, Fortress Join $150 Million Saudi Private Credit Deal

Key Points

1. Goldman Sachs, HSBC and Fortress are financing $150 million for United Saudi Company, people familiar said.
2. It is among the first major deals involving international financiers since the US-Iran war began in February.
3. Riyadh is courting private capital as war costs and a liquidity squeeze strain bank funding.

The latest:

A group including Goldman Sachs, HSBC and Fortress Investment Group is providing $150 million in financing to United Saudi Company, people familiar with the matter told Bloomberg, in one of Saudi Arabia’s first major private credit deals since the regional war began. The transaction brings major international financiers back into the kingdom’s alternative lending market and is among the largest since mid-2025.

Details:

• The syndicate: Goldman Sachs, HSBC and Fortress are partnering with Middle East fund managers including Ruya Partners and Amwal Capital Partners on the $150 million package, according to people familiar with the matter who asked not to be identified discussing private information.
• A first for Fortress: The transaction marks the first private credit deal in Saudi Arabia for Fortress, which is backed by Abu Dhabi’s Mubadala Investment Co. Bloomberg described it as a win for a kingdom actively seeking to pull in more international funding.
• Responses: Goldman Sachs, HSBC and Amwal declined to comment, and Fortress did not respond to a request for comment. Ruya confirmed it took part in a deal for United Saudi Company but declined to provide further details.
• Why now: Saudi Arabia is turning increasingly to private capital as Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman pursues his multitrillion-dollar economic transformation while absorbing fiscal strain from the war and near-daily attacks by the Iran-backed Houthis, according to Bloomberg.
• The security backdrop: The Saudi-led coalition fighting the Houthis in Yemen said Wednesday night it destroyed three missiles headed for Riyadh. That followed a Sunday attack that damaged Saudi Aramco’s offices in the capital’s financial district, which houses Wall Street firms including Goldman.
• Liquidity stress: Renewed liquidity tightness is adding to funding pressure at Saudi banks and threatens to curtail spending on critical projects. The spread between Saibor and SOFR has widened in recent months under war-related pressures, based on Saudi central bank and Bloomberg data.
• The SME gap: Demand is sharpest among small and medium enterprises, which often fail to secure bank financing yet underpin the diversification drive. Beyond traditional private credit, they are turning to venture debt, crowdfunding and micro-lending.
• Other entrants: Specialized financing, usually asset-backed lending, has also drawn interest. Jefferies Financial Group, Citigroup and Apollo Global Management are among international financiers that have invested in such deals over the past 18 months.
• New funds: Janus Henderson said last month it has raised almost $200 million for its regional private credit fund. Ruya, backed by Mubadala and Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund, is raising capital for a $400 million vehicle that would rank among the Middle East’s largest.

Background:

Alternative financing began taking on a bigger role in Saudi Arabia in mid-2025. Private credit there remains largely a local affair, held back by market entry hurdles, regulation and limited familiarity with the asset class, according to Bloomberg.

Between the lines:

The deal lands while missiles are being intercepted over Riyadh and an Aramco office in the financial district sits damaged — in the same district where Goldman operates. That international lenders are writing checks under those conditions suggests the pricing available in a liquidity-squeezed market is outweighing the security premium, at least for a $150 million ticket shared across a syndicate.

What’s next

Watch whether Ruya closes its $400 million fund and whether the Saibor-SOFR spread keeps widening, a direct read on Saudi bank liquidity. Further deals by Goldman, HSBC or Fortress would signal this was an opening, not an outlier.