The initial public offer of Twitter made money for Saudi Arabia's Prince Alwaleed Bin Talal and his firm Kingdom Holding. It was estimated that the Saudi royal earned an estimated USD600 million.
Kingdom Holding purchased a 3% stake in Twitter back in 2011. The price for the shareholdngs then was at USD300 million. In a statement issued by the firm last Sunday, it confirmed that its investment had increased in value by 200%. This would mean the shareholdings of the Saudi prince would now have a value of USD900 million.
In the statement, Prince Alwaleed said, "Twitter is the most prominent social media network in the world and our investment in the company is a strategic long-term investment."
Twitter is a mass social media platform that connects people through information called tweets. These tweets are no longer than 140 characters. On the average, there are 250 million Tweets per day with over 100 million active users.
Twitter's IPO was met with feverish speculation last week with share prices reaching USD50 per share, after initial valuation of USD26 per share and IPO opening price of USD45. The share values closed at USD44.90 and has since dropped on its second day of trading at the NYSE to USD41.65 per share.
The statement further read that the investment by the Prince and Kingdom Holdings was the result of 'several months of negotiations and comprehensive due diligence and represent a strategic stake in Twitter.'
There were hints provided that the billionaire Saudi royal would be expanding his shareholdings in Twitter when it went public but the statement issued last Sunday quashed such speculation.
Aside from Twitter, Kingdom Holding has significant investments in other media firms such as its 29.9% share in Saudi Research and Marketing Group, 7% in 21st Century Fox and over 50% in Rotana.
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