SoftBank said to hire Deutsche Bank’s chief for Saudi operations

Japan's SoftBank Group Corp. is hiring the head of Deutsche Bank AG’s unit in Saudi Arabia to lead a new office in Riyadh, Wall Street Journal reported, citing people familiar with the matter.

SoftBank Investment Advisers is set to appoint Deutsche’s Ziyad Al Ashaikh to build a team in the Kingdom and help the fund’s portfolio companies set up in the country, the sources said.

SoftBank Investment Advisers manages the $100 billion Vision Fund, in which Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund (PIF) is the biggest single investor with a $45 billion stake.

The sovereign wealth fund has already begun working with SoftBank to bring tech startups to the Kingdom, the daily reported.

The Vision Fund is headed by Rajeev Misra, a former Deutsche veteran based in London. It also recently appointed former Deutsche banker Faisal Rahman as regional head for the Middle East based in Abu Dhabi.