Telecom & Technology

The second SIM tells the truth

August 16, 2026

Opensignal's Saudi read puts stc at 49.0% of the market, Mobily at 23.8% and Zain KSA at 14.6%, with virtual operators collectively near 12% and 7.4 million subscribers in early 2026. Zain customers are likeliest to carry a second SIM at about 37%, against 27% at Mobily and about 17% at stc; operators have invested over $1.5 billion in 5G spectrum since 2019.

Argaam

Dual-SIM rates show pre-churn behavior, so focus your pricing and packaging on the second SIM instead of comparing only to a competitor's main plan.

Mohammed Altuwaijri
|
Managing Partner

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Government & Public Sector
August 5, 2026
PIF's $2.4 billion half

Lucid announced $1.4 billion in identified cost cut as H1 2026 losses widened 50% to $2.4 billion from $1.6 billion a year earlier. H1 production was 10,274 vehicles against a full-year target of 25,000–27,000. Shares fell 9% after the announcement.

AGBI

The second half now needs to roughly double the first, and $1.4 billion in cuts does not close a $2.4 billion gap on its own, production is the real test here, not the balance sheet.

Osamah Alfadda
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CEO
Energy & Fuel Retail
August 4, 2026
47,000 new customers in a quarter

Saudi Energy posted H1 2026 revenue up 11% to SR52 billion and net income up nearly 8% to SR6.7 billion, though Q2 net profit fell 7% on higher finance costs. Capital expenditure reached SR39 billion, up 6%. The customer base hit 11.6 million, with more than 47,000 added in Q2; the distribution network grew 5%, transmission 4% and fibre-optic lines 7%. The stock is up over 25% year to date.

AGBI

47,000 new connections in three months is roughly 500 a day, paid for with capex running near six times profit, the grid is being built ahead of the country that will eventually fill it.

Abdullah Alkherb
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Senior Partner
Financial Services & Banking
July 27, 2026
Six quarters down

Tadawul Group Q2 profit −4% to SR92M, sixth straight annual decline, while data services grew 13.7%.

Arab News

An exchange earning less in a market this active is a warning about volumes, the thin tape has landed in someone's earnings.

Mohammed Altuwaijri
|
Managing Partner

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