PwC's consulting ban from Saudi fund has rivals hunting for work

Rival consultants to PwC are gearing up for the chance to make deeper inroads into the lucrative market of Saudi Arabia in the aftermath of the Public Investment Fund's decision to ban the company from advisory work for a year.

Managers at Deloitte and Ernst & Young have instructed staffers to prepare for more work in the kingdom, according to people familiar with their thinking. Some firms have already been invited to bid for contracts tied to some of the kingdom's most prestigious and lucrative projects, including Neom and AlUla, according to one of the people, who asked not to be identified as the information is confidential.

Those moves show that the consultancy's competitors believe they stand a better chance of securing contracts in the kingdom with a key rival sidelined. The PIF's decision centers around PwC's advisory work and the firm can still pursue auditing contracts, Bloomberg News first reported last month.

Representatives for Deloitte, EY and PwC declined to comment.  

One key question for PwC's competitors would be their ability to absorb any additional contracts, given the relatively limited local pool of consultants.

Some firms are already preparing for that risk. EY has flown in more than a dozen staffers from other offices to prepare for any new work the firm is able to pick up, according to one of the people familiar with the matter. 

PwC hasn't publicly commented on the reasons behind the ban, though in a memo to staff Regional Managing Partner Ken Walsh said the issue wasn't related to service delivery or regulatory breaches. PwC Global Chairman Mohamed Kande is said to have traveled to Riyadh in recent weeks.

Biggest, fastest growing

The PIF is responsible for carrying out the kingdom's economic transformation plan, known as Vision 2030, and has set up about 100 portfolio companies to pull off the ambitious program. That includes Neom, a $1.5 trillion new city on the west coast, as well as other projects aimed at building out historic areas like Diriyah and AlUla into tourist destinations.

Contracts related to those projects have made the fund a driver of growth for consultants and handed a lifeline to the sector, which is grappling with an extended slump around the world. Consultancy work for the PIF and its portfolio companies likely generates hundreds of millions of dollars in fees for the industry, according to people familiar with the matter.

The Middle East region generated £1.97 billion ($2.5 billion) in revenue for PwC UK, the corporate entity that includes the region, in the 12 months to June 30. Saudi Arabia is the biggest and fastest-growing market for consulting within the Gulf, making up more than half of the $6 billion in regional revenue, according to the research firm Insights. 

PwC, echoing its competitors, reported slower global growth in 2024 as demand for consulting work waned and revenue shrunk in its Australia and China businesses. In September, Beijing suspended the firm's operations for six months and imposed a $62 million penalty over lapses in its auditing of failed developer China Evergrande Group.