Saudi Prince Alwaleed reached secret agreement with govt

DUBAI: Saudi Prince Alwaleed bin Talal, the chairman of Kingdom Holding who spent nearly three months in detention in the kingdom´s anti-corruption campaign, told Bloomberg TV he had reached an agreement with the government for his release.

The prince declined to disclose the details of his “confirmed understanding” with authorities in the interview, which aired on Tuesday, but said it was easy to verify that he still held a 95 percent stake in his global investment firm.

“When I say it is a confidential and secret agreement, an arrangement that is based on a confirmed understanding between me and government of Saudi Arabia, I have to respect that,” he said. The process with the government was ongoing, he said. The prince also said he was in talks with the country´s emerging sovereign wealth fund about co-investments in domestic projects, and that Kingdom Holding was looking at splitting its $13 billion of assets by spinning off some holdings.