Five things you must know about Arab’s richest man, Al-Waleed bin Talal
Prince Alwaleed bin Talal said he has already donated .5 billion to the charitable organization. (Source: Reuters photo) Prince Alwaleed bin Talal said he has already donated .5 billion to the charitable organization. (Source: Reuters photo)
Al-Waleed bin Talal, the flamboyant Saudi prince, yet again finds himself at the top of the Forbes list of richest Arabs. The latest 2017 Forbes’ Middle East edition estimates his net worth to be around USD 18.7 billion. In 2016 he featured at number 41 in the world’s richest list, with net worth of $17.3 billion.
Here is a list of fascinating things about the Saudi billionaire prince:
Born with a silver spoon:
Saudi King Salman Saudi King Salman
Prince Al-Waleed bin Talal was born into the Saudi royal family and is a grandson of Ibn Saud, the first monarch and founder of Saudi Arabia. He is the son of Talal bin Abdulaziz Al Saud and the half-nephew of Saudi king Salman.
An entrepreneur by passion:
Prince Alwaleed bin Talal attends the traditional Saudi dance known as ‘Arda’, which was performed during Janadriya culture festival at Der’iya in Riyadh. (Source: REUTERS/Fayez Nureldine/Pool/File Photo) Prince Alwaleed bin Talal attends the traditional Saudi dance known as ‘Arda’, which was performed during Janadriya culture festival at Der’iya in Riyadh. (Source: REUTERS/Fayez Nureldine/Pool/File Photo)
The prince founded Kingdom Holding Company, a leading investment holding company, in 1980, and owns 95 per cent share of the conglomerate.
Educated in the West:
Menlo College, California, an alma mater of prince Talal Menlo College, California, an alma mater of prince Talal
After finishing school, he went to the United States for pursuing higher studies. He has a bachelor’s degree in business administration from Menlo College, California and a master’s degree in social science from Syracuse University, New York.
Holds liberal positions to his credit:
A Saudi veiled woman enjoys a swing in a park during holiday in Jiddah, Saudi Arabia. A Saudi veiled woman enjoys a swing in a park during holiday in Jiddah, Saudi Arabia.
Al-Waleed bin Talal is also a strong advocate of women’s rights. He once took to Twitter and triggered a debate on Saudi women being disallowed to drive. He wrote: “It’s time for women to drive”.
كفى نقاش: حان وقت قيادة المرأة للسيارةhttp://t.co/BBgyF8i1Gs Stop the debate: Time for women to drivehttp://t.co/6KAniFa4BT — الوليد بن طلال (@Alwaleed_Talal) November 29, 2016
Hanadi Zakaria al-Hindi, the first Saudi woman commercial airline pilot, was financed by the prince.
Tied knot to beautiful women:
Ameera al-Taweel met Prince Talal when she was 18 Ameera al-Taweel met Prince Talal when she was 18
He was married to the Princess Ameera Al-Taweel. However, both got separated in 2013.
Feud with Trump:
US President Donald Trump US President Donald Trump
Before Donald Trump won the Presidential elections, the prince termed him as “a disgrace to America”. However, he changed his position and made amends after Trump became president.
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