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JPMorgan, Ford Motor Drop Out of Saudi Investment Conference

Numerous companies have pulled out of the Future Investment Initiative since Jamal Khashoggi’s disappearance.

The CEO of JPMorgan Chase and the executive chairman of Ford Motor Company will not attend a Saudi investment conference in the wake of Washington Post columnist Jamal Khashoggi’s disappearance. A JPMorgan spokesman told the Financial Times that Jamie Dimon will not be attending the Saudi event. Reuters reported that Chairman Bill Ford canceled his multi-stop trip to the Middle East, including an appearance at The Future Investment Initiative (FII), hosted by Saudi Arabia’s sovereign wealth fund. Neither company would elaborate on why the men were canceling their appearances or whether the cancellations are related to Khashoggi’s suspected murder at Istanbul’s Saudi Arabian consulate earlier this month. Media outlets including The New York Times and CNN have already pulled out the conference. Billionaire Richard Branson also suspended $1 billion investment talks with the sovereign wealth fund over allegations about the Saudi involvement in Khashoggi’s disappearance.

DRAWING A LINE

NYT, Others Ditch Saudi Festival Over Journo’s Disappearance

Maxwell Tani