Saudi boosts market monitoring ahead of foreign open

Saudi Arabia's regulator adjusted stock ownership guidelines in a bid to boost transparency on Tuesday, as the Middle East's biggest bourse takes steps toward opening up to direct foreign investment.

Foreign buyers of Saudi stocks currently do so through swap arrangements with an authorised entity in the kingdom making the ultimate owner unknown. Under the new guidelines, the actual owner of the stock will now be identified.

The move will help the regulator impose ownership limits when the market eventually opens up, using the Qualified Foreign Institutional Investor (QFII) route.