RIYADH: The second edition of the Catalyze Saudi event saw entrepreneurs and investors from around the world gathering to explore venture capital, private equity and other investment partnership opportunities in the Kingdom. The three-day event, which began on Dec. 9 in AlUla and culminated in Riyadh, is powered by the Ministry of Investment of Saudi Arabia and Jada Fund of Funds. Launched in March 2022, Catalyze Saudi is an engagement platform to encourage the exploration of opportunities within the VC and PE ecosystem in Saudi Arabia. This edition was focused on the future of the entertainment industry, bringing together experts to discuss opportunities across sectors such as gaming, media, music, sport, design, tourism, and hospitality, with a key consideration on increasing investment in Saudi Arabia. Some of the key participants included Martin Avetisyan, chief growth officer, Farfetch; Samuel Cardillo, head of technology at Nike (RTFKT); Rio Ferdinand, broadcaster and former professional footballer; Fernando Garibay, music producer; and Alexander Heller, founder & CEO, HyperSpace. Opportunities in the entertainment sector are ample, with Saudi Arabia recently announcing its intentions to become a global hub for gaming and esports. Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman recently announced the Kingdom’s ambition to see 30 competitive games developed by firms in the Kingdom by 2030 as part of the country’s national gaming and esports strategy. Savvy Games Group, a firm owned by Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund, unveiled investments worth SR142 billion ($37.8 billion) to transform the Kingdom into a global gaming hub with world-class gaming companies. Catalyze Saudi aims to support the growth of Saudi Arabia’s startup and entrepreneurship ecosystem. This is a much-needed platform considering that the number of small and medium enterprises registered in Saudi Arabia was close to a million by the end of the third quarter of 2022. The number of SMEs in Saudi Arabia jumped 9.3 percent in the third quarter of 2022, driven by strong economic growth and a healthy entrepreneurial ecosystem in the Kingdom, according to the latest government figures. A report released by the General Authority for Small and Medium Enterprises, known as Monsha’at, showed the number of firms reached 978,445 in the three months to the end of September, up from 892,063 in the second quarter. The Monsha’at report pointed out that venture capital funding in Saudi Arabia in the first nine months of 2022 witnessed a 93 percent year-on-year increase totaling SR3.1 billion ($820 million). According to Monsha’at, policy changes that have been implemented in the Kingdom since 2016 are one of the reasons behind the surge in the number of SMEs. The report further noted that dedicated policies to invest in emerging technologies have also triggered innovation and job creation in the SME sector.