RIYADH: Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund further increased its stakes in Meta and Alphabet in the third quarter of 2022, as the sovereign wealth fund continues its asset expansion plans globally. According to its latest 13F filing for the three months ending Sept. 30, the PIF revealed it held about 3.26 million class A shares in Facebook’s parent company Meta – up from 418,000 class A shares at the end of the first quarter and 2.94 million at the end June. The filing also said the PIF had significantly increased its share in Google’s parent firm Alphabet to 4.26 million capital stock class A shares at the end of the third quarter from 213,000. The filing noted that PIF has dropped its stake of more than 8 million shares in US-based electric vehicle company Hyzon Motors. PIF kept its stake unchanged in major firms, including Amazon, Alibaba, Microsoft, PayPal, FedEx, Home Depot, Salesforce, Visa and Walmart at the end of the third quarter. The PIF is one of the world’s largest sovereign wealth funds, with assets valued at $620 billion, according to data released by Sovereign Wealth Fund Institute in April. The fund is a driving factor behind Saudi Arabia’s growth for several years, and it is playing a crucial role in achieving the goals outlined in Vision 2030, which primarily aims to diversify the Kingdom’s economy which has been dependent on oil for decades. In October, PIF’s Governor Yasir Al-Rumayyan said he has a detailed strategy to increase the fund’s assets to reach between $2 to $3 trillion by the end of this decade. “We want to reach $1 trillion by 2025. And we are almost now less than $700 billion, we need close to $400 billion to reach this size of assets,” said Al-Rumayyan, during an interview given to the Thmanyah podcast. He added: “We have a complete plan from now till 2030, on how to reach a trillion and reach between $2 to $3 trillion, and His Highness Crown Prince is determined to reach it.” Earlier in September, Bloomberg reported that PIF is planning to hire 50 employees for its New York office. According to the Bloomberg report, PIF is planning to recruit staff for multiple positions in various sectors including investment research, legal and compliance, along with hiring a chief of staff for its New York office. Apart from expanding globally, PIF is also expanding its regional footprints. In October, the fund launched Halal Products Development Co. aimed at localizing the halal production industry in the Kingdom. Post the launch of the new firm, PIF said that the company could help Saudi Arabia become a global halal hub.