1. HRH Prince Alwaleed Bin Talal Bin Abdulaziz Alsaud, chairman, Kingdom Holding Company

Origin: KSA Residence: KSA Sector: Finance Since establishing Kingdom Holding in 1979, Alwaleed has acquired increasingly shrewd investments, now owning stakes in Citibank, Movenpick Hotels, Walt Disney, Apple Inc, News Corp, Twitter and PepsiCo, among others. Twitter's public listing last year increased the value of his $300 million stake, acquired in 2012, to around $1.2 billion by the end of 2013.


Origin: KSA Residence: KSA Sector: FinanceAl Falih has worked his way up the ranks to the top seat at the oil giant since joining in 1979. In the wake of the US shale gas boom, Falih said last year that his company was exploring the potential of Saudi Arabia’s own unconventional deposits and has carried out appraisal drillings in three prospective areas.

3. ALI BIN IBRAHIM AL NAIMI, Petroleum and mineral resources minister

Origin: KSA Residence: KSA Sector: Energy As presider over the world’s largest oil reserves, Saudi Arabian Minister of Petroleum and Mineral Resources Ali bin Ibrahim Al-Naimi plays a critical role in the future of energy. Al-Naimi is highly respected in the country due to his wide experience within the industry. As the world’s economic outlook continues to fluctuate and US shale gas emerges, Al-Naimi looms large in oil supply decisions.


Origin: KSA Residence: KSA Sector: Industry Al Mady has spent more than a decade and a half as CEO completing the dramatic transformation of SABIC into the world’s biggest chemical maker. He took over in 1998 and continued its expansion to become the largest listed company in the Middle East. Al Mady’s recent moves have seen the company enhance its presence in Asia with new technology centres opened in China and India.

5. AZIZA AL YOUSEF, Saudi female driver

Origin: KSA Residence: KSA Sector: Culture and Society Al-Yousef is a well-known advocate in the struggle to end the ban on women driving in Saudi Arabia. The computer science university lecturer has driven numerous times and was arrested for doing so in November 2013. That same month she had an audience with Saudi’s Interior Minister, Prince Mohammed bin Nayef, via teleconference in which she conveyed a message to end the driving ban.