RIYADH: Red Sea Global, the subsidiary of Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund, is considering raising funds from the market through a public offer or a real estate investment trust fund by 2026, CEO John Pagano told Bloomberg. “There will be some kind of public market event, whether it’s an initial public offering, whether it’s an establishment of a REIT, those are things that we’re currently studying,” Pagano told Bloomberg in an interview. The developer of giga-projects such as the Red Sea Project and AMAALA said it is in talks with banks and related parties but did not divulge any information on advisers, banks, or valuation. Pagano said that the company will go to market once the hotels have been operational for about two years and achieved a track record of occupancy, cash flow, and profitability. He indicated that the company’s current objective is to create a revenue stream that helps further growth value. On a global level, from a property markets perspective, the idea of public real estate companies has largely vanished, the CEO emphasized. Pagano said that real estate investment funds are gaining popularity mainly due to tax efficiency and accessibility to a broader investor base. In an interview with Arab News during the Future Investment Initiative Forum held in Riyadh last October, the CEO had evinced interest in listing publicly as a future option to secure additional funding. He also revealed that the company would open an airport with a seaplane terminal to commemorate the first opening of the hotels and welcome the guests. “We have another 13 resorts under development right now that will open a year later. So, in 2024, we will complete the first phase of the Red Sea, which is a total of 16 hotels,” Pagano told Arab News in October. Regarding AMAALA, he highlighted that the luxury development has eight resorts under construction that will also be completed at the end of 2024.