SRC acquires SAR 3.4 bn mortgage portfolio from SNB: The Saudi National Bank (SNB) agreed to sell a SAR 3.4 bn real estate financing portfolio to the Saudi Real Estate Refinance Company (SRC), the real estate finance arm of the Public Investment Fund, according to a press release. The move comes as the Kingdom aims to modernize and expand its real estate finance sector.

The details: SNB offloaded the portfolio to boost liquidity, allowing it to issue more loans to new borrowers in a bid to increase homeownership among Saudi nationals, according to the press release. The agreement also helps lay the foundation for creating residential mortgage-backed securities, to encourage local and global investors to tap into the local market.

SRC has been growing its portfolio: SRC signed an agreement in December to acquire aSAR 1 bn mortgage portfolio from Bidaya Finance. It also inked an MoU with Saudi Mortgage Guarantees Services Company (Damanat) in October that would see Damanat provide coverage for the mortgage portfolios owned by SRC.

REMEMBER- The government is rolling out policies — including buyer-friendly mortgages — as it looks to achieve a 70% home ownership target by 2030, but the Kingdom also needs to build out an additional 1.2 mn housing units by 2030 to meet that goal. The state-run National Housing Company has been tasked with building affordable housing options, with 200k homes in the pipeline as it targets 300k by the end of 2025, according to recent estimates.

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