Saudi Telecom Company (STC) announced today the establishment of STV, a technology venture capital fund of $500 million.

STV will have complete independence and will deploy independent governance and operation models designed in accordance with international best practices, allowing it to leverage STC’s assets to enable its investments and the surrounding ecosystem to grow and scale.

The new corporate VC will be managed by a leading team of regional and international talents in this field.

STC claimed STV as the largest institutional technology venture capital fund in the Middle East. The company believes that the Middle East is witnessing a digital transformation that is full of opportunities in the digital economy and digital industries. This new VC fund will help STC achieve its strategic growth aspirations and help realize Vision 2030’s technological ambitions by investing in new digital areas and by growing the digital innovation ecosystem in the region.

معا نصنع المستقبل@STC_KSA و @STVcapital pic.twitter.com/dsh9pOmA7d

— STV (@STVcapital) May 25, 2017

"We are very proud of this historic step by STC, which will be a pivotal turning point for the region's technology ecosystem," said Dr. Khalid Al Bayari, CEO of STC. "Global telecoms have two choices — to either change and evolve into digital companies, or to convert into a utility. We have elected to go down the first route. STC has the potential, resources and strategic assets to make a quantum leap in the technology and entrepreneurial sectors it is working on transforming.”

"We believe the region can create its own future and we will invest in the next generation growth engines that will make this happen" said Abdulrahman Tarabzouni, CEO of STV. "The centers of gravity for growth and value across the world’s economies and industries will undergo profound transformations due to technology disruptions, and we believe STV will create value for STC and the region amidst these transformations”.