Happy Friday everyone!

Media earnings contractions, summit scheduling adjustments, and corporate governance debates lead regional business updates. MBC Group reported a nine-month net loss of SAR 509.79 million as weaker regional advertising and unrealized investment losses weighed on earnings. In Riyadh, the Future Investment Initiative Institute officially rescheduled its flagship FII10 conference to October 2027 to ensure broader international participation. Meanwhile, KBW Ventures founder Prince Khaled bin Alwaleed pushed back against reports suggesting chipmaker Nvidia could remove CEO Jensen Huang following personal conduct disclosures that sent shares down over 8% in after-hours trading.

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MBC Group Swings to SAR 509.79M Nine-Month Net Loss on Weaker Advertising

🔹 What Is It About 

Saudi media broadcaster MBC Group posted a net loss of SAR 509.79 million for the first nine months of 2026, reversing a SAR 402.56 million profit recorded in the same period a year ago. Total revenue dropped 22.8% to SAR 2.96 billion, dragged down by a SAR 765 million drop in broadcasting and commercial activities as regional advertising demand softened and commercial contracts expired. While streaming platform MBC Shahid grew revenue by SAR 161 million on higher subscriber income, unrealized fair-value losses on investments cut investment income by SAR 628 million.

• Reversing Net Profit: Nine-month earnings swung from a SAR 402.56 million profit to a SAR 509.79 million loss.

• Dropping Ad Revenues: Broadcasting and commercial revenues declined by SAR 765 million due to softer regional ad budgets.

• Growing Streaming Subscriptions: MBC Shahid added SAR 161 million in revenue, partially cushioning linear television declines.

🔹 Why It Matters 

Falling commercial broadcast revenues highlight how regional geopolitical uncertainty causes corporate brands to pause marketing and advertising budgets. Growth in paid subscriptions on MBC Shahid confirms that audiences and recurring consumer spending continue shifting toward digital streaming platforms. Managing unrealized equity fluctuations alongside core broadcast declines tests financial resilience for publicly listed media conglomerates.

🔹 What’s Next 

MBC Group management will focus on expanding paid subscriber tiers on MBC Shahid and securing new commercial sponsorship contracts for upcoming Ramadan programming. Financial analysts will watch fourth-quarter portfolio valuations to see if unrealized investment losses stabilize.

• Scaling Digital Subscribers: Streaming teams will launch new regional content productions to grow paid user retention.

Future Investment Initiative Institute Reschedules FII10 Summit to October 2027

🔹 What Is It About 

The Future Investment Initiative Institute officially moved its 10th flagship conference, FII10, in Riyadh from October 2026 to October 25–28, 2027. Held under the patronage of King Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud under the theme "The Power of Legacy," the milestone gathering marks ten years of global investment discussions. FII Institute CEO Princess Dr. Maha bint Mishari bin Abdulaziz Al Saud stated that rescheduling the event ensures stronger international executive participation and broader global reach.

• Moving Flagship Dates: FII10 in Riyadh will take place from October 25 to 28, 2027, instead of late 2026.

• Maximizing Global Turnout: Organizers adjusted the calendar to secure higher in-person attendance from international financial leaders.

• Maintaining Regional Summits: The institute will host its FII PRIORITY Miami Summit from March 31 to April 2, 2027.

🔹 Why It Matters 

Postponing the flagship Riyadh summit to 2027 allows organizers to avoid regional travel disruptions and ensure major Wall Street and European executives attend in person. Concentrating global chief executives in Riyadh remains a primary channel for Saudi entities to announce sovereign co-investments and international business partnerships. Hosting interim summits in Miami and Asia keeps investor dialogue active between flagship gatherings in the Saudi capital.

• Protecting Executive Attendance: Shifting dates avoids travel restrictions that could limit in-person turnout from global bankers.

🔹 What’s Next 

FII Institute teams will finalize speaker lineups and session agendas for the FII PRIORITY Miami Summit in March 2027. Organizers will also announce dates and host cities for their upcoming Asia summit while opening early registration for FII10 in Riyadh.

• Finalizing Miami Agendas: Event coordinators will confirm keynote speakers for the March 2027 Miami gathering.

Prince Khaled bin Alwaleed Criticizes Reports Suggesting Nvidia Could Oust CEO Jensen Huang

🔹 What Is It About 

Saudi investor H.R.H. Prince Khaled bin Alwaleed, founder of KBW Ventures, publicly criticized media reports suggesting chipmaker Nvidia could remove Chief Executive Officer Jensen Huang. The speculation followed a Wall Street Journal report detailing board reviews surrounding two alleged extramarital affairs involving the longtime executive. Following the news, Nvidia shares dropped more than 8% in after-hours trading, adding pressure to the semiconductor giant's recent market valuation losses.

• Defending Chipmaker Leadership: Prince Khaled bin Alwaleed pushed back against calls to replace Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang.

• Triggering Stock Drop: Nvidia shares fell over 8% in after-hours trading following reports of board inquiries.

🔹 Why It Matters 

Public support from prominent Middle Eastern tech investors underscores how closely global institutional shareholders tie Nvidia’s market dominance to Jensen Huang’s technical leadership. Sudden leadership uncertainty at the world's primary artificial intelligence chip supplier creates immediate volatility across global technology equities. Gulf sovereign funds and regional tech investors hold substantial stakes in AI infrastructure, making executive stability at core hardware suppliers critical to regional data center expansion.

• Tying Value to Leadership: Market drops demonstrate how heavily investors link Nvidia's hardware dominance to Huang's direction.

🔹 What’s Next 

Nvidia’s board of directors will conclude its internal governance review and issue formal guidance to reassure institutional shareholders. Market analysts will monitor regular trading sessions to see whether share prices stabilize following the after-hours sell-off.

• Awaiting Board Statements: Nvidia directors will clarify executive governance findings to calm institutional market concerns.

👨‍💻From Smashi Business’ Desk

• Qatar Investment Authority (QIA) CEO Mohammed Saif Al-Sowaidi has publicly addressed the sovereign wealth fund’s participation in the $110 billion Skydance-Paramount-Warner Bros. Discovery deal for the first time.⁠

• Egyptian-American creator Kareem, the man behind viral interview series @subwaytakes, has been named one of just 25 winners of the 2026 Instagram Rings Awards.

• A $12 chicken sandwich has sparked a debate over wealth and inequality in Lebanon.

• An Islamic brokerage founder says Anthropic wouldn’t make the cut on his app.

• An Emirati AI company has outperformed Microsoft, ElevenLabs, Google and OpenAI in Arabic speech recognition accuracy.

🔍In other news…

• Karen Wazen Collection Just Expanded to Egypt With Two New Stores

• Saudi's PIF, Silver Lake have held recent talks to buy gaming software provider Unity, sources say

• U.S. Offers $20 Million Reward for Iran Nuclear Secrets

• GCC rejects US claim Hormuz could become ‘worthless’

• Aramco's Q3 profit rises by a third despite attacks

• Saudi Arabia Pushes Ahead With IPO Rule Changes Despite Banker Warnings

• Dubai's Emaar plans offer to buy out construction arm in $3.4 billion deal

• US President Donald Trump says Washington will stop giving Israel $4 billion annually after this year

• UN shipping chief criticises huge payouts for crews risking Hormuz

🦄 World of Startups

• NoorNation: Egypt-based cleantech startup NoorNation raised $1.05 million in seed funding from Linah Farms, Catalyst Fund and KBW Ventures to expand its solar-powered irrigation and desalination solutions.

• Silkhaus: UAE-based short-term rental startup Silkhaus is winding down its holiday-home business in the country, with owner agreements set to end on November 11, 2026.

• MNT-Halan: Egyptian fintech MNT-Halan received a $71.2 million capital injection from its parent company, MNT Investments BV, increasing the parent’s stake to 80.47% shortly after the fintech’s $139.5 million IPO.

• Alpha Dhabi: UAE-based Alpha Dhabi Holding committed $1 billion to Alpha Wave III, a global investment fund managed by Alpha Wave Global that focuses on high-growth companies, with AI at its core.

• Mubadala Capital: UAE-based Mubadala Capital secured a minority equity investment from US asset manager Apollo Global Management, which manages $1.05 trillion in assets, with the investment value undisclosed.

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