PwC inaugurates regional headquarters in Riyadh

PwC will next year launch a new flagship office and technology & innovation hub in Riyadh.

First announced at the beginning of last year, professional services firm PwC has officially inaugurated its new headquarters in Riyadh, after receiving the necessary license from the Ministry of Investment and Ministry of Commerce in the Kingdom.

During the ceremony attended by investment minister Khalid Al-Falih, PwC unveiled that its 2,000-plus employees in the Kingdom – more than half of its local headcount being Saudi nationals – will next year move into a new flagship office and experience centre in Saudi Arabia’s capital city.

“I am delighted to join PwC as it inaugurates its new regional headquarters, which will help to build the regional headquarters ecosystem in Saudi Arabia and set global standards for how a professional services regional headquarters should operate,” Al-Falih stated. “It is a natural continuation of a longstanding, trusted and mutually beneficial relationship and I also commend PwC on its strong record of employing more than 1,000 talented Saudis in its workforce.”

The move is part of a program established in 2021 requiring companies which do business with state entities to have their regional headquarters based in the Kingdom, with PwC celebrating the formal obtainment of its license ahead of next year’s deadline and following recent deals signed with Saudi Arabia’s Digital Government Authority and Institute of Public Administration.

The firm said the new regional headquarters further confirms its commitment to Vision 2030.

“We are thrilled to have received our license and are honoured to continue supporting the Kingdom’s remarkable transformation as we accelerate towards 2030 and beyond,” said Hani Ashkar, PwC’s regional senior partner. “At PwC, we are fully committed to supporting Saudi Arabia’s next phase of its transformational agenda as we digitise, decarbonise, localise, privatise and modernise.”

PwC officially announced its new regional Saudi headquarters at the beginning of last year, with the flagship office to be based at the King Abdullah Financial District and sit alongside its existing country network including further outlets in Riyadh, Jeddah, Al Khobar, Dhahran and AlUla, the latter which was launched last year.

In addition, the new base will include a technology & innovation hub, joining several other locations across the region.

Together, PwC’s office footprint in the country is host to more than 2,000 employees, including 400 Saudi women, with the firm aiming to further expand those numbers over the next three years as part of a broader, region-wide push to create 6,000 new jobs amid ongoing investment into digital technology and its ESG capabilities. PwC has so far this year recruited over 200 Saudi graduates, more than half of whom are women.

“We’re proud of our journey in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia for over 40 years, building trust and delivering sustained outcomes,” said KSA country senior partner Riyadh Al Najjar, who was last year appointed chairman of the firm’s Middle East board. “We are committed to the Kingdom’s ambition and efforts as it strengthens and diversifies its economy to deliver opportunities for its people and deliver on the promise of a remarkable future.”