Saudi’s corruption crackdown puts $33bn of personal wealth at risk
London/Dubai — Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman’s crackdown on some of Saudi Arabia’s richest and most powerful men has put $33bn of personal wealth at risk. The stunning series of arrests has implicated three of the country’s richest people, including Prince Alwaleed bin Talal, who’s in the 50th spot on the Bloomberg Billionaires Index ranking of the world’s 500 richest people, with $19bn. Also being held are the kingdom’s second-and fifth-wealthiest people, as well as a travel-agency mogul and Bakr bin Laden, a scion of a one of the country’s biggest construction empires. The arrests, which the crown prince said are part of a fight against corruption, have reportedly led the government to freeze the accounts of the more than three dozen men detained, believed to be held at the Riyadh Ritz-Carlton. Alwaleed bin Talal, $19bn: Alwaleed’s publicly traded Kingdom Holding Group released a statement saying it "enjoys a solid financial position" and the government has "full confidence" in...
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