SBI Holdings Japan and Saudi Aramco, the state-owned oil company of Arabia, are contemplating collaborating on projects involving the investment of digital assets and the creation of an SBI subsidiary in the Middle East.
The parties entered into a memorandum of understanding (MoU) regarding collaboration, which encompasses the creation of SBI Middle East in Riyadh, which will serve as a strategic hub for activities in the area above.
Per the memorandum of understanding (MoU) dated December 7, Saudi Aramco and SBI intend to explore collaborating and co-investing in their respective digital asset portfolios.
They might identify Japanese digital asset startups potentially interested in establishing semiconductor production initiatives in Saudi Arabia and Japan. Also, in addition:
“The scope of the alliance may be expanded upon agreement between the Company and Aramco.”
After Walmart, Saudi Aramco ranks as the second-largest corporation globally in revenue. The MOU referenced investments by Saudi Aramco to enhance its supply chain.
Despite the government’s considerable interest in Web3, cryptocurrency is “not recognized by legal entities” in Saudi Arabia. Also highlighted was the partnership between SBI Holdings and Powerchip Semiconductor Manufacturing of Taiwan.
SBI Holdings has recently undertaken this action to establish a foothold in the Middle East. It formed a joint venture in November with SC Ventures, the fintech investment arm of the British bank Standard Chartered, to establish an investment firm in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) that would make bets on “decentralized finance (DeFi), consumer payments, tokenization, risk management and compliance tools, market infrastructure, and the metaverse.”
In September, TradeFinex, headquartered in the United Arab Emirates, and SBI Holdings formed a joint venture in Japan to localize TradeFinex’s XDC Network enterprise blockchain.
SBI Holdings is Ripple’s most significant external shareholder. Since 2018, it has been a Ripple partner. Late in November, SBI Holdings and Circle announced a memorandum of understanding (MoU) that would increase USDC circulation and Web3 services in Japan, pending regulatory approval.
