Saudi Arabia and France just unlocked bns in two-way capital flows, moving their strategic partnership far beyond oil and defense. Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman’s visit to Paris saw the two nations sign 21 agreements spanning infrastructure, energy, AI, and entertainment.

Why it matters: This is a highly structured mobilization of state-backed capital. France is deploying aggressive export financing to ensure its companies win Saudi giga-project contracts, while Saudi Arabia is using its sovereign wealth to bring its entertainment ambitions to the heart of Europe.

Capital flows into Riyadh: French state-backed investment bank Bpifrance Assurance Export is stepping in with serious firepower to derisk and fund French operators in the Kingdom.

The Finance Ministry and Bpifrance are setting up an initial USD 5 bn credit line to finance and refinance contracts executed by French companies in Saudi Arabia;
A separate financing package of around USD 5 bn is envisioned for the National Debt Management Center to fund Riyadh Metro work, the Sharaan Hotel in AlUla, and rolling stock for Expo 2030 and the 2034 World Cup;
Saudi Energy secured a USD 3 bn financing framework with Bpifrance, coordinated by BNP Paribas and HSBC, to develop its electricity grid.

… and Paris: In a soft-power flex, Entertainment group Qiddiya will invest EUR 6 bn (some USD 7 bn) to build three amusement parks — including a sprawling Dragon Ball Z manga-themed park — near Cergy-Pontoise, northwest of Paris. The Qiddiya-led project is expected to create 22k jobs in the Paris area. The agreement stems from a shared passion for manga discovered in a 2025 meeting between MbS and Macron.

Corporate megadeals were also on the table:

Energy: Aramco signed USD 3.7 bn in procurement agreements with French oilfield services firms SLB and Vallourec;
Transport: Alstom won a EUR 500 mn contract for Riyadh Metro Lines 3 and 6, while maritime logistics giant CMA CGM and Red Sea Gateway Terminal agreed to a EUR 434 mn investment to develop Terminal 4 at Jeddah Islamic Port;
Tech: French AI champion Mistral AI and our own Humain struck a strategic cooperation framework to jointly develop and commercialize AI models.

Geopolitical alignment: The two nations are coordinating on regional economic architecture, launching a joint Saudi-Syrian-French business council to drive investment in Syria, positioning the country as a trade bridge connecting Europe, the Gulf, and Asia. This comes on the heels of a Saudi delegation signing USD 6.4 bn in agreements in Syria.

What’s next? France is already the fourth-largest source of foreign direct investment in Saudi Arabia, with EUR 16.3 bn deployed in 2024. As these massive state-backed credit lines activate, expect French contractors, defense firms, and tech players to aggressively scale their footprints in the Kingdom — and for Saudi capital to increasingly target European leisure and real estate assets.

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