HM Treasury says the Chancellor has overseen a UK–Saudi package “worth over £6.4bn” after leading a senior delegation to Riyadh for the Future Investment Initiative and the Fortune Global Forum on 26–29 October 2025. The department frames the announcement as part of a push to deepen Gulf ties and accelerate work on a UK–GCC trade agreement.
The headline figure blends export credit capacity with commercial plans. HM Treasury’s breakdown includes up to £5.1bn of UK Export Finance support via a renewed memorandum with Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund, plus corporate moves such as Barclays establishing a regional headquarters in Riyadh, a £37m investment by Saudi cyber firm Cipher to open a European office in London, and a £75m Saudi-backed investment into UK digital bank Vemi. These are mixed in timing and certainty: export credit is contingent and demand-led; corporate announcements vary between licences, relocations and capital commitments.
The refreshed UKEF–PIF memorandum is central. UKEF confirms a Saudi market cover of roughly £4–5bn and says the MoU is intended to make PIF and its portfolio companies more likely to procure from UK suppliers by offering buyer and direct lending backed by the UK guarantee. Any drawdowns depend on projects proceeding and UK firms winning supply contracts; the MoU itself is not expenditure. PIF’s own statement aligns on the objective and headline capacity.
Policy Wire analysis: UKEF support is finance, not grant. Under UKEF’s reporting, issued business is counted as “amount at risk” - a contingent liability - rather than day‑to‑day spending. The risk sits within government’s wider stock of guarantees and is managed against limits and premia; actual cash only flows if guarantees are called. UKGI’s 2025 report underscores the growing need to monitor the state’s contingent liabilities portfolio.
Additional corporate steps point to the Kingdom’s regional headquarters policy. Reuters reports Saudi authorities recognising Barclays’ RHQ in Riyadh, while HSBC Saudi Arabia has signed a long‑term lease to move to the King Abdullah Financial District. Aviation links also tightened, with Riyadh Air launching its inaugural London Heathrow service on 26 October - initially restricted to staff and partners before wider sales.
There are defined export opportunities alongside the finance headroom. UKEF previously guaranteed a c.$700m Islamic Murabaha facility for Six Flags Qiddiya City - described by the agency as its largest Murabaha to date and first in the region - which HM Treasury now associates with over £90m of potential UK supplier contracts. Delivery depends on work packages being awarded and UK content qualifying.
Clean‑tech and industrial announcements feature but remain early‑stage. HM Treasury points to Levidian’s partnership with Kanoo Energy and a pilot “planned with Aramco”, while other public statements over the past year have shown LOOP units being deployed with ADNOC Gas in Abu Dhabi. Firms should treat the UK–Saudi items as pipeline indications until contracts and offtake are in place.
The package also references education and cyber. The University of Strathclyde’s physical presence at Princess Nourah University in Riyadh is flagged, and Darktrace has announced a Riyadh office to serve regional clients from early 2026. These moves are consistent with wider UK services expansion into the Gulf’s financial and digital hubs.
Trade policy context matters. Government scoping and news releases for a prospective UK–GCC FTA estimate long‑run impacts of around a 16% boost to trade, roughly £1.6bn a year to UK GDP and c.£600m to wages, while the 2022 strategic approach set a GDP range of £1.6–£3.1bn. Negotiations have reached at least six rounds; in Riyadh this week, the Chancellor said she was hopeful of a deal “very soon”.
Policy Wire analysis: the delivery profile will stretch over years. Most of the £6.4bn is potential rather than booked trade. Export credit capacity converts only when projects hit financial close and UK firms secure content; corporate relocations into KAFD support regional service exports but do not automatically translate into UK domestic jobs. Policymakers should watch conversion rates, UK content rules and premium income versus risk.
For exporters, the immediate actions are practical. Engage early with UKEF on buyer credit opportunities tied to PIF portfolio projects; map Saudi procurement pipelines in infrastructure, leisure and energy; and assess compliance, localisation and visa requirements for on‑the‑ground teams. UKEF’s latest accounts show the scale of the instrument when it does convert - £14.5bn of support in 2024–25, associated with up to 70,000 UK jobs - but each case still hinges on contract wins.