Future Investment Initiative conference in Riyadh postponed to 2027 amid travel disruption
Key Facts
The Future Investment Initiative Foundation has postponed its Riyadh conference to 2027 from 26 to 29 October 2026, according to an official message to participants. The decision comes amid the fallout from attacks on Riyadh airport and travel disruption, after organisers had confirmed preparations were continuing as planned. The foundation attributed the change to its commitment to delivering the scale, quality and impact expected by partners, members, speakers and participants, according to Asharq Bloomberg and Arab News. In its message, it said it aimed to ensure "the full scale, quality and impact expected by our partners, members, speakers and participants". The foundation confirmed that all existing registrations and partnerships remain fully valid following the postponement.
The postponement marks a shift from the position previously reported by Reuters, when organisers said the conference would proceed as planned despite attacks in the kingdom during the week. Those assurances followed earlier attacks, including an attack on Thursday, before the major attack on Riyadh airport on Saturday. The foundation said at the time that "safety and well-being remain our highest priority", according to the agency, as it reaffirmed that preparations for the investment gathering were continuing. Reuters reported that organisers had considered a hybrid format allowing executives to participate remotely before deciding to postpone. Expected speakers included David Solomon, chairman and chief executive of Goldman Sachs, according to Reuters' coverage of arrangements for the event.
On the security backdrop to the decision, a subsequent Reuters update reported that Saturday's attack on Riyadh airport killed 13 people and injured more than 300. The airport closed following the attack, which the agency described as the deadliest in the kingdom in more than a decade, disrupting air transport. Event schedule changes also extended to the Saudi Retail Forum, according to The National's coverage of postponed gatherings in the kingdom. The forum had been scheduled for 19 November before being officially moved to March 2027, according to the newspaper. In markets, oil rose by about 2 dollars a barrel during the 12 October session, as Reuters said the impact of the attacks on Saudi Arabia outweighed the prospect of increased supply.
The decision postpones an investment gathering whose previous edition drew more than 10000 participants, according to the executive report published by the Future Investment Initiative Foundation on that edition. The report cited anticipated deals worth more than 50 billion dollars across energy, artificial intelligence, infrastructure and construction. The foundation described that value as relating to anticipated deals, as part of the business outcomes presented in the report on the conference's previous edition. Since its establishment, the foundation says its global network has helped facilitate and spotlight investments and initiatives worth more than 250 billion dollars. The foundation attributes that total to what it and its network have helped facilitate and spotlight since inception, while the anticipated deal estimate relates to the report on the previous edition.
The announced programme for the postponed edition focused on 4 themes: capital, technology, communities and leadership, according to materials published by the foundation before the schedule changed. The foundation presented those themes under the phrases "capital that builds, technology that advances, communities that thrive, and leadership that inspires", as part of its announced vision for the conference. Its announced plans also included the full launch of the "Capital in Motion" index, which it linked to the tenth edition of the Future Investment Initiative. When presenting that plan, the foundation said "the full launch of the index is scheduled for the tenth edition", placing it within the programme of the edition that has now been postponed. The index launch was thus tied to the conference itself, alongside the investment, technology and community themes included in the published agenda for the upcoming edition.
The next arrangements centre on announcing the conference's detailed new dates in 2027, after the decision cancelled its planned staging in October 2026. The foundation said those dates would be announced soon, according to Asharq Al-Awsat's account of the message to participants. Teams will contact participants in the coming days, as part of the steps the foundation outlined to follow up on their arrangements after the event's rescheduling. That outreach includes providing support and answering questions, according to the newspaper's account of the measures for partners and participants in the postponed conference. According to the message, the announcement of the new dates will follow the decision to move the conference to next year, while the foundation's teams begin contacting participants in the coming days.