Moody's Strengthens Middle East Footprint With Riyadh Headquarters

Moody's Corporation MCO has set up a regional headquarters in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, reinforcing its long-term commitment to expanding its presence in the Middle East. The move is strategically aligned with Saudi Arabia’s rapid development of its capital markets under Vision 2030, led by Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman.

As part of this expansion, Moody’s has appointed Mahmoud Totonji as general manager to oversee and lead the regional headquarters in Riyadh.

Rob Fauber, President and CEO of Moody’s, said, “Our decision to establish a regional headquarters in Riyadh reflects our confidence in Saudi Arabia’s strong economic momentum, as well as our commitment to helping domestic and international investors unlock opportunities with our expertise and insights."

The new expansion strategy is expected to enhance Moody’s partnerships with the country’s institutions and broaden the availability of its decision grade data, analytics and credit insights. A stronger on-the-ground presence will enable the company to build closer relationships with regulators, financial institutions and corporate issuers; improve access to local market intelligence; and respond more effectively to client needs.

Additionally, expanding into a high-growth emerging market will help MCO to diversify its geographic revenue base beyond Western markets and strengthen its competitive positioning in the region.

Moody’s Prior Global Expansion Efforts

Moody’s has steadily expanded its global footprint through a mix of acquisitions and partnerships. In August 2025, it announced plans to increase its stake to majority ownership in Middle East Rating & Investors Service to expand across Africa and the Middle East. In June, Moody’s acquired ICR Chile to strengthen its Latin American presence, with ICR Chile operating as a Moody’s Local affiliate.

In 2024, it fully acquired Global Credit Rating Company Limited to deepen its reach in Africa’s domestic credit markets. Before that, in 2023, Moody’s acquired SCRiesgo, expanding its coverage across Central America and the Dominican Republic.

MCO’s latest expansion, combined with its earlier strategic moves, reinforces its global footprint, strengthens its presence in high-growth markets and supports its long-term growth.

MCO’s Zacks Rank & Price Performance

Over the past six months, shares of Moody’s have fallen 8.7% compared with the industry’s decline of 10.8%.

Currently, MCO carries a Zacks Rank #2 (Buy). You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank (Strong Buy) stocks here.

Global Expansion Efforts by Other Finance Firms

Last week, Apollo Global Management, Inc. APO entered into a strategic partnership with U.K.-based Schroders to develop next-generation wealth and retirement investment solutions for institutional and wealth clients across the U.K. and the United States.

The deal also allows Schroders to allocate capital from existing client portfolios to Apollo Global’s credit capabilities, targeting solutions that deliver better client outcomes.

Earlier in February, Robinhood Markets HOOD announced the launch of its new stocks & shares individual savings account (ISA) in the U.K. This launch represents another milestone in the company’s expansion outside the United States.

Robinhood is providing a 2% cash bonus on new eligible ISA contributions made before April 5, 2026, with investors required to keep those contributions in the account for at least one year to receive the full bonus. Furthermore, the company offers zero platform fees, no trading commissions and low FX fees of 0.10% per trade.