Al Waleed bin Talal Al Saud

Saudi Arabian businessman, investor and royal

Prince Al-Waleed bin Talal bin Abdulaziz Al Saud (Arabic: الوليد بن طلال بن عبدالعزيز آل سعود; born 30 July 1954)[2] is a member of the Saudi Royal Family. He is the nephew of the Saudi Arabian King Abdullah. An entrepreneur and international investor but without real political power within the House of Saud or in Saudi Arabia, he has amassed a fortune through investments in real estate and the stock market.

Prince Al-Waleed bin Talal Al Saud
الوليد بن طلال بن عبدالعزيز آل سعود
Born (1954-07-30) 30 July 1954 (age 70)[1]
NationalitySaudi Arabian
Alma materMenlo College
Syracuse University
Occupation(s)Chairman and CEO of Kingdom Holding Company
Years active1978–present
Spouse(s)Dalal bint Saud bin Abdulaziz (divorced)
Eman bint Naser bin Abdullah al Sudairi (divorced)
Ameera al-Taweel (divorced)
FamilySaud
Kingdom 5KR, a yacht owned by Alwaleed Bin Talal

As of March 2010, his net worth is estimated at US$19.4 billion, up from $13.3 billion, according to Forbes, making him the 19th richest person in the world on their list published in March 2010.[3] He has been nicknamed by Time magazine as the Arabian Warren Buffett.[4][5][6]

Talal bought the super yacht Kingdom5KR.[7] It had been owned by Donald Trump and called the "Trump Princess".[7] The yacht, built in 1979, was used in the James Bond movie, Never Say Never Again.[7] It has 11 cabins, can take 22 guests and has a crew of 31.[8]

On 4 November 2017, he was arrested in Saudi Arabia, in an anti-corruption raid,[9][10] together with, among others, Waleed bin Ibrahim Al Ibrahim and Saleh Abdullah Kamel.[11] Al-Waleed was released from detention on 27 January 2018, following a financial settlement of some kind, after nearly three months in detention.[12][13] In March 2018 he was dropped from the World's Billionaires list due to lack of current information.[14]

Early life and education

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Al-Waleed was born in Jeddah on 30 July 1954[15][16] to Prince Talal bin Abdul-Aziz, long-time-known as The Red Prince, and Mona Al Solh, daughter of Riad Al Solh (Lebanon's first prime minister).[17][18]

Honours

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Saudi Arabian national honours

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Ribbon bar Honour
  Member 1st Class of the Order of Abdulaziz Al Saud

Foreign honors

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Ribbon bar Country Honour
    Bahrain Member 1st Class of the Khalifiyyeh Order of Bahrain
    Benin Grand Officer of the National Order of Benin
    Brunei Member 1st Class of the Family Order of Laila Utama
    Bulgaria Member 1st Class of the Order of the Balkan Mountains
    Burkina Faso Commander of the National Order of Burkina Faso
    Burundi Grand Cross of the National Order of the Republic of Burundi
    Chad Grand Officier of the National Order of Chad
    Comoros Commander of the Star Anjouan
    Central African Republic Grand Cross of the National Order of Merit of Central African Republic
    Djibouti Grand Cordon of the National Order of the Star of Djibouti
    France Commander of the Legion of Honour
    Gabon Grand Cross of the National Order of Merit of Gabon
    Gambia Grand Commander of the Order of the Republic of The Gambia
    Ghana Companion of the Order of the Volta
    Guinea Commander of the National Order of Merit of Guinea
    Equatorial Guinea Grand Cross of the Order of Independence
    Jordan Grand Cordon of the Order of the Star of Jordan
    Ivory Coast Grand Cross of the National Order of the Ivory Coast
    Kenya Grand Cordon of the Chief of the Order of the Golden Heart of Kenya
    Lebanon Grand Officer of the National Order of the Cedar
    Liberia Grand Cordon of the Order of the Star of Africa
    Madagascar Grand Cross of the National Order of Madagascar
    Mauritania Commander of the National Order of Merit of Mauritania
    Maldives Grand Cordon of the Order of the Distinguished Rule of Izzuddin
    Mali Grand Officier of the National Order of Mali
    Malta Companions of the National Order of Merit (Malta)
    Monaco Grand Officier of the Order of Grimaldi
    Morocco Grand Cordon of the Order of Ouissam Alaouite
    Netherlands Officier of the Order of Orange-Nassau
    Niger Grand Cordon of the National Order of Merit of Niger
    Pakistan Second Class of Nishan-e-Pakistan
    Philippines Grand Officier of Order of Sikatuna
    Senegal Grand Officier of the National Order of the Lion
    Sierra Leone Grand Gordon of the Order of the Republic (Sierra Leone)
    South Korea Sungnye Medal of the Order of Diplomatic Service Merit
    Sudan Grand Cordon of the Republic of the Sudan
    Syria Member 1st Class of the Order of the Umayyads
    Taiwan Grand Cordon of the Order of Brilliant Star
    Togo Grand Officier of the Order of Mono
    Tunisia Grand Officier of the Order of the Republic
    Vietnam Medal of the Friendship Order
    Uganda Companion of the Most Excellent Order of the Pearl of Africa

Personal life

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His first wife, Dalal, as a child, standing between her father King Saud and John F. Kennedy

Al-Waleed has been married four times.[19]

References

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  1. 1.0 1.1 Khan, Riz (2005). Alwaleed, Businessman Billionaire Prince. New York: HarperCollins. p. 19. ISBN 9780060850302.
  2. "Saudi Arabia's Prince Alwaleed's Timeline". Archived from the original on 22 December 2015. Retrieved 12 July 2016.
  3. Forbes topic page on Prince Alwaleed Retrieved March 2010
  4. "Alwaleed Bin Talal Bin Abdulaziz Al Saud". Alwaleed Bin Talal Bin Abdulaziz Al Saud. Archived from the original on 6 May 2014. Retrieved 24 May 2014.
  5. "The mystery of the world's second-richest businessman". The Economist. 25 February 1999. Archived from the original on 19 May 2017. Retrieved 24 May 2017.
  6. Jehl, Douglas (28 March 1999). "Buffett of Arabia? Well, Maybe". The New York Times. Archived from the original on 7 March 2017. Retrieved 24 May 2017.
  7. 7.0 7.1 7.2 "Kingdom 5KR". yachts.monacoeye.com. 2011. Archived from the original on 20 January 2021. Retrieved 6 November 2011.
  8. "Kingdom 5KR Yacht - Benetti motor yacht". superyachts.com. 2011. Archived from the original on 13 November 2011. Retrieved 6 November 2011.
  9. Kirkpatrick, David D. (4 November 2017). "Saudi Arabia Arrests 11 Princes, Including Billionaire Alwaleed bin Talal". The New York Times. Archived from the original on 8 November 2017. Retrieved 8 November 2017.
  10. "Alwaleed bin Talal, two other billionaires tycoons among Saudi arrests". Daily Sabah. 5 November 2017. Archived from the original on 5 November 2017. Retrieved 5 November 2017.
  11. Alwaleed bin Talal, two other billionaires tycoons among Saudi arrests, 4 November, Daily Sabah
  12. "Saudi billionaire Prince Al-Waleed freed after 'settlement'". Agence France-Presse. 27 January 2018. Archived from the original on 28 January 2018. Retrieved 27 January 2018. The prince was released following an undisclosed financial agreement with the government, similar to deals that authorities struck with most other detainees in exchange for their freedom.
  13. Ben Hubbard, Billionaire Saudi Prince, Alwaleed bin Talal, Is Freed From Detention Archived 27 January 2018 at the Wayback Machine, The New York Times (27 January 2017).
  14. Dolan, Kerry (6 March 2018). "Why No Saudi Arabians Made The Forbes Billionaires List This Year". Forbes. Archived from the original on 6 March 2018. Retrieved 6 March 2018.
  15. Gornail, Jonathan (8 March 2013). "Newsmaker: Prince Al Waleed bin Talal bin Abdulaziz Al Saud". The National. Archived from the original on 1 August 2013. Retrieved 18 July 2013.
  16. Sherifa Zuhur (31 October 2011). Saudi Arabia. ABC-CLIO. p. 97. ISBN 978-1-59884-571-6.
  17. Mamoun Fandy (2007). (Un)civil War of Words: Media and Politics in the Arab World. Greenwood Publishing Group. p. 43. ISBN 978-0-275-99393-1.
  18. Moubayed, Sami (1 February 2011). "Lebanon cabinet: A tightrope act". Lebanon Wire. Archived from the original on 23 March 2013. Retrieved 7 April 2013.
  19. Royal Saudi couple’s divorce is 'amicable' Richard Johnson. Page Six. NYPost.com 20 November 2013. Retrieved 13 December 2015

Further reading

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