The Trump Organization has signed a new deal with a Saudi Arabian real estate company to build a residential high-rise tower in the city of Jeddah, expanding the family’s close ties with the kingdom.
Saudi Arabia has emerged as one of the few reliable sources of growth for the Trump family’s business operations as new U.S. real estate deals have emerged since the Jan. 6, 2021, attack on the Capitol and former President Donald J. Slow down or stop.
The new deal is like other international projects the Trump family has signed over the past decade. The company is offering the family’s name and brand to a well-funded developer who will build the project and sell luxury residential units, hoping to sell them at a premium based on the former president’s perceived marketability due to his star power. Other projects include a resort complex in Oman and, in recent years, a Saudi-backed golf tournament at Trump Stadium.
Ziad El Chaar, CEO of real estate company Dar Global, said: “We are pleased to strengthen our ongoing relationship with the Trump Organization and expand our portfolio by delivering high-quality properties that will redefine high-growth real estate in Saudi Arabia. market.
Mr Al-Char said the target market would be international investors and holidaymakers looking to buy property in Jeddah.
Headquartered in London, Dar Global is a subsidiary of Dar Al Arkan, one of Saudi Arabia’s largest private real estate companies with a growing portfolio of projects in the global luxury market. The company often partners with well-known brands such as Dolce & Gabbana and Lamborghini as part of a pitch to buyers with deep pockets.
Before Trump was elected president in 2016, his organization had planned to build a tower in the Middle East, but that deal and other development plans were shelved after Trump was elected and his family pledged not to sign new international agreements. deals while in the White House.
These brand deals have become a major source of new revenue for the Trump family, as the Trump Organization typically receives millions of dollars after signing a deal and then gets a cut of the sale of a luxury apartment or condo.
“We are excited to expand our footprint in the Middle East,” Eric Trump said in a statement Monday.
Projects in Oman include a Trump-branded golf course and hotel as well as Trump Villas, which Dar Global is building on Omani government-owned land on a cliff overlooking the Gulf of Oman. Financial disclosure documents show that even before construction began last year, the deal alone earned the Trump family at least $5 million.
Last year, a group of sales agents invoked Trump’s name to help sell luxury villas for up to $13 million, targeting ultra-rich buyers from around the world, including those from Russia, Iran and India.
Another major new source of income for the Trump family is LIV Golf, a professional league backed by Saudi Arabia’s sovereign wealth fund. Earlier this year, the fund paid the Trump family to host a game at Trump Country Doral near Miami.
Trump’s two eldest sons, Eric and Don Jr., have expressed frustration with previous commitments not to strike new international deals, and it’s unclear whether they would continue to pursue those deals if Trump returns to the White House.
Saudi Arabia’s sovereign wealth fund is also a major investor in an investment company established by Trump’s son-in-law Jared Kushner after he resigned as an adviser to the Trump White House.
The deals have raised accusations of conflicts of interest, particularly those directly involving foreign government entities, as foreign actors may offer the Trump family special terms in exchange for preferential treatment that Trump might receive if he returns to power.
“If he were re-elected, it would be a profound conflict of interest,” said Robert Weisman, president of Public Citizen, which tracks the Trump family’s business dealings while in office.
While Dar Al Arkan is technically a private company, listed on the Saudi Arabian Stock Exchange, it relies in part on Saudi Arabian government contracts to sustain its business.
Vivian Nerem Contributed reporting.
