Saudi’s PIF lifts PwC consulting ban after year-long freeze – report

Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund (PIF) has lifted a year-long ban on new advisory work from PwC, Semafor Gulf reported on Monday, citing people familiar with the matter, allowing the consultancy to resume pitching for work with one of its most important regional clients.

The sovereign wealth fund informed PwC that restrictions imposed in February 2025 had been lifted, according to Semafor. PIF declined to comment, while PwC did not respond to their request for comment.

The ban had applied to new advisory and consulting services for PIF and its portfolio companies, while PwC’s audit work continued unaffected. The restriction dealt a significant blow to PwC’s Middle East business, prompting the firm to cut around 60 partners and 1,500 staff across the region, Semafor reported.

Neither PIF nor PwC publicly disclosed the reasons for the ban when it was imposed. However, the Financial Times reported in March that the fallout was triggered after PwC attempted to hire the chief internal audit officer of NEOM, the $500 billion mega-project controlled by PIF.

Saudi authorities viewed the move as a breach of trust, according to the FT, given concerns that it could have provided the firm with access to sensitive internal information. PwC’s consulting work was subsequently frozen, while its audit business continued.

The suspension initially excluded PwC from major Vision 2030-linked projects, including Red Sea Global and AlUla, where the firm had previously held significant advisory mandates, according to people familiar with the matter cited by Semafor.

PwC reshuffles regional leadership

In the months following the ban, PwC sought to repair relations with Saudi officials. The firm’s global chairman, Mohamed Kande, travelled to Riyadh for meetings with wealth fund executives, and PwC later reshuffled its regional leadership, appointing Laura Hinton to lead its Middle East business from late 2025, Semafor reported.

The lifting of the ban comes as Saudi Arabia’s consulting market slows following several years of rapid growth. Government belt-tightening has reduced demand for external advisers, with Bloomberg reporting that a broader slowdown in spending is roiling the sector.

PwC said its Europe, Middle East and Africa revenues rose 8.6 per cent in the year ended June 2024, making it the firm’s fastest-growing region at the time.

PwC has begun pitching again for new advisory mandates with PIF and its subsidiaries, Semafor reported.