Saudi Vision 2030, the brainchild of Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman to reduce the kingdom’s dependence on oil income, is coming undone. The king has stripped away the central pillar of the project. The country is becoming more autocratic and repressive. The slide toward greater repression is prompting capital flight.

The centerpiece of the ambitious plan was to open up Aramco, the national oil company, to outside investors. Five percent of the company would be opened initially, creating an initial public offering, or IPO. The crown prince estimated that the company would be valued at $2 trillion, creating the world's largest IPO of $100 billion.

From the beginning the plan had serious problems. The company was overvalued considerably. There were difficulties in finding a stock exchange market. President Donald Trump pressed the Saudis to select New York, but there was a chance that a New York listing would place the IPO at risk of being seized in the trial underway by claimants asserting that Saudi Arabia was a party to the Sept. 11 attacks. London has been compromised by the Brexit campaign, which is raising questions about the future of the British banking sector.

At home, critics of the plan asserted it would place the nation’s largest asset in the hands of foreigners, effectively reversing the Saudization of the oil industry. Other critics said the deal would force the government to open up the government account and expose the role of the royal family in the profits of the business.