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Deals coincide with Trump's Gulf tour

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Saudi Arabia's PIF signs up to $12 bln in investment deals

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Riyadh aims to deepen capital markets, draw foreign

investment

(Rewrites paragraph 1 with deal value, adds context on PIF and

executive comment in paragraph 11)

By Hadeel Al Sayegh and Manya Saini

DUBAI, May 14 (Reuters) -

Saudi Arabia's sovereign wealth fund on Wednesday announced

up to $12 billion in investment deals with top U.S. asset

managers after a visit by

U.S. President Donald Trump

, underscoring the kingdom's growing appeal for Wall

Street's titans.

The partnerships highlight a deepening alignment between

Western financial groups and Gulf sovereign wealth funds, as

both seek to capitalize on trillion-dollar opportunities in

emerging technologies, finance, and cross-border capital flows.

Franklin Templeton said it signed a non-binding memorandum

of understanding (MoU) with the kingdom's Public Investment Fund

to partner in investing up to $5 billion in Saudi Arabia's

financial markets.

Neuberger Berman also agreed to a similar deal to invest up

to $6 billion in the kingdom, and to launch a Riyadh-based

multi-asset investment management platform, while Northern Trust

Asset Management committed to up to $1 billion.

Infrastructure investment manager I Squared Capital said it

has signed a MoU with PIF to establish a dedicated

infrastructure investment strategy focused on the Middle East.

Saudi Arabia's PIF, one of the world's largest sovereign

wealth funds with over $900 billion in assets, sits at the heart

of Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman's economic transformation

agenda.

The announcements came during Trump's four-day tour of the

Gulf, which has featured elaborate ceremonies and a wave of

business agreements, including Saudi Arabia's $600 billion

investment pledge in the United States and $142 billion in arms

deals.

RACE TO GROW

Saudi Arabia is in a race to secure more outside money to

keep ambitious plans to diversify its economy on track. The

country set itself a lofty target to attract $100 billion in

annual foreign direct investment by the turn of the decade.

Riyadh has taken steps to try to encourage foreign firms to

invest more in the country. The government in 2021, for example,

said companies seeking to secure state contracts must set up

their regional headquarters in Saudi Arabia.

"Through our global multi-asset investment platform and our

local business expansion, we look forward to contributing to the

domestic economy, building local teams," Neuberger Berman CEO

George Walker said.

PIF has been increasing its focus on domestic investment as

part of its commitment to the country's economic transformation

plans.

It has ploughed hundreds of billions of dollars into the

local economy, in everything from a camel dairy firm to NEOM, a

gargantuan futuristic city in the desert.

The first day of Trump's visit to the kingdom, saw a number

of U.S. technology firms, including sector heavyweights Nvidia ( NVDA )

and Advanced Micro Devices ( AMD ) announce artificial

intelligence deals in the Middle East.

Several notable agreements were struck with Humain, an AI

startup launched by PIF, earlier this week.