CMA compensates over 20,000 investors over Al Kathiri, Anaam violations

Capital Market Authority (CMA) headquarters

The Capital Market Authority (CMA) compensated more than 20,000 investors who were harmed by market violations involving the shares of Al Kathiri Holding Co. and Anaam International Holding Group.

The compensation follows violations committed by several individuals against whom the Appeal Committee for the Resolution of Securities Disputes (ACRSD) issued a final ruling published on Dec. 14, 2023.

The ruling required the violators to pay SAR 292.8 million in illicit gains resulting from the violations, following a case filed by the Public Prosecution and referred by the CMA.

The authority said the compensation amounts have been deposited into the eligible investors' accounts through the Compensation Fund established by a CMA resolution, in accordance with the distribution plan approved by the Committee for the Resolution of Securities Disputes (CRSD).

The approved distribution plan was designed to reflect the scale of the violations, the value of the illicit gains, and the extent of the harm suffered by investors who traded the shares of the two companies during the violation period. According to the CMA, some investors received compensation exceeding SAR 6 million.

Under Article 59 of the Capital Market Law, the CMA may regulate procedures for compensating individuals harmed by market violations and assess the appropriateness of establishing dedicated compensation funds financed by recovered illicit gains. This led to the establishment of the fund to compensate eligible investors in line with the approved distribution plan and the applicable regulatory framework aimed at enhancing the efficiency of such funds.

The CMA added that, as part of its efforts to strengthen compensation mechanisms, it reviewed international best practices in financial markets and adopted approaches suited to the Saudi capital market. These initiatives aim to improve the efficiency of compensation mechanisms, enhance investor confidence, protect investors' rights, and support the development of a more advanced, competitive, and efficient financial market.

The authority noted that this is the fourth compensation fund established for victims of capital market violations within less than 12 months, following the first fund announced in July 2025.

Compensation funds complement other mechanisms for facilitating compensation to affected investors. The authority establishes such funds when the facts and circumstances of a case demonstrate the existence of actual harmed investors and when it determines that a compensation fund would be a more effective and practical solution than other available compensation methods.

According to Argaam data, the ACRSD announced on Dec. 14, 2023, the conviction of eight investors for violating the Capital Market Law and its implementing regulations.

The committee imposed fines totaling SAR 9.6 million and ordered the violators to repay SAR 292.8 million in illicit gains generated through their investment portfolios, as well as three additional portfolios owned by the minor children of one of the convicted investors.

The violations involved manipulation and misleading practices while trading shares of Al Kathiri and Anaam, including transferring shares among themselves to secretly increase their ownership stakes, influence share prices, and exit their positions simultaneously.

The committee issued a final ruling convicting Abdulaziz bin Abdullah Al Bunyan, his four sons — Faisal Al Bunyan, Sultan Al Bunyan, Abdullah Al Bunyan and Fahad Al Bunyan — his two daughters, Reem Al Bunyan and Nouf Al Bunyan, as well as Hind bint Mohammed bin Abdulrahman bin Assaker, for violating Article 49 of the Capital Market Law and Article 2 of the Market Conduct Regulations.

The committee found that they had engaged in coordinated trading, synchronized increases in ownership, and simultaneous exits in the shares of Al Kathiri and Anaam during various periods, primarily in 2020. It also ordered the precautionary seizure of all their movable and immovable assets, including bank and investment accounts, until the amounts due are recovered.

At the time, the CMA said investors harmed by the violations were entitled to file individual or class compensation claims before the CRSD.