Finance Egypt generates $5.6bn from stake sale in 14 companies Egypt’s privatisation programme has generated $5.6 billion from the sale of complete or partial stakes in 14 state-owned entities, according to Prime Minister Mostafa Madbouly. The International Finance Corporation (IFC) is conducting preliminary studies for the potential inclusion of 50 additional state-owned companies under its initial public offering (IPO) programme, Egypt Today reported, citing Madbouly. […] December 25, 2023
Markets MBC raises $390m with oversubscribed IPO Saudi media company MBC Group’s IPO on the Saudi stock exchange was 17.6 times oversubscribed, raising SAR1.46 billion ($390 million). A minimum of nine shares were allocated to each subscriber and the remaining shares were distributed pro rata, according to a statement on stock market website Tadawul by lead manager and advisor HSBC Saudi Arabia, […] December 22, 2023
Construction Developer Jabal Omar plans debt-to-capital conversion Jabal Omar Development Company, one of the largest companies on the Saudi stock exchange, said this week it will settle around SAR547.5 million ($146 million) in debt owed to two companies by converting it into shares in a formal capital increase. The real estate developer builds and manages property in the pilgrimage city of Mecca. […] December 21, 2023
Transport Saudi low-cost airline Flynas to launch IPO Flynas, the Saudi carrier backed by Saudi billionaire Prince Alwaleed Bin Talal, has hired consultants for a potential initial public offering (IPO) in Riyadh. The low-cost airline may go public as early as next year, Bloomberg reported, citing an airline statement. Goldman Sachs Group, Morgan Stanley and Saudi Fransi Capital will work on the IPO. […] December 21, 2023
Markets Shares in Abu Dhabi’s Pure Health surge on bourse debut Shares in Abu Dhabi’s Pure Health gained more than 70 percent on its debut on the UAE capital’s bourse on Wednesday. The healthcare provider, part-owned by Abu Dhabi sovereign fund ADQ, sold 10 percent of its stock at AED 3.26 ($0.89) per share in an initial public offering that raised AED 3.62 billion ($986 million) […] December 20, 2023
Finance Payment app Foodics to launch first Saudi fintech IPO Foodics, the cloud-based restaurant management and payment business, is to be the first Saudi fintech to list on the Saudi stock exchange in an IPO next year. “We haven’t decided exactly when but we plan to do an initial public offering during the next year,” Foodics’s general manager, Kamal Mirghalani, told Saudi-owned TV channel Asharq […] December 20, 2023
Finance Bahraini fund in talks to take full ownership of McLaren Bahrain’s sovereign fund is nearing a deal to take full control of the British supercar maker McLaren Group, according to a media report. Mumtalakat Holdings, which holds a 62.55 percent stake in McLaren, is in talks to buy the 20 percent stake held by minority shareholders and convert their equity into warrant-like instruments, Sky News reported. […] December 20, 2023
Tech Merger to create astronomic UAE space company Two Abu Dhabi technology companies are planning a merger to create a $4 billion space organisation for the region. The boards of Bayanat and Yahsat have voted to recommend a merger to shareholders, a filing to the Abu Dhabi Stock Exchange on Tuesday revealed. The proposal will create a company with an implied market capitalisation […] December 19, 2023
Finance Family companies don’t like to be questioned, says Mishal Kanoo Most family-run companies in the UAE shy away from becoming listed because they are not accustomed to the level of scrutiny and transparency that an IPO entails, according to leading Gulf businessman Mishal Kanoo. Kanoo, chairman of The Kanoo Group, one of the largest independent groups of companies in the Gulf region – and the […] December 14, 2023
People & Lifestyle High demand puts Pure Health IPO order book at $72bn Pure Health, the largest healthcare group in the Middle East, set the final price for its initial public offering (IPO) at AED3.26 ($0.89), raising AED3.62 billion following strong demand from investors. The company is offering 1.11 billion ordinary shares, or 10 percent of its total issued share capital, on the Abu Dhabi Securities Exchange (ADX). The […] December 13, 2023
Media & Advertising Saudi’s MBC Group prices IPO at top of the range Strong investor demand has led Saudi media company MBC Group to price its initial public offering (IPO) at SAR25 per share, the top of a range published earlier this month. The price implies a market capitalisation of SAR8.3 billion ($2.2 billion) at listing, said IPO manager HSBC in a filing to the Saudi Stock Exchange […] December 12, 2023
Markets Saudi market regulator says 46 IPO requests under review Saudi Arabia’s capital market regulator has confirmed that 46 initial public offering (IPO) requests were still under study in the third quarter of 2023. Five listing requests were for the main market (Tasi) and 41 requests were pending for the Nomu-Parallel Market, the state-run Saudi Press Agency reported, citing the Capital Market Authority’s latest quarterly […] December 11, 2023
Markets Dubai Taxi shares jump 19% in debut trading Dubai Taxi Company shares rose by 19 percent in its debut trading on Thursday after a $315 million initial public offering (IPO), marking the emirate’s first privatisation in over a year. Shares in Dubai Taxi opened at AED2.20 ($0.60) on the Dubai Financial Market, according to data from the stock exchange website. The offer price […] December 7, 2023
Analysis Markets Real estate trusts struggle despite strong Dubai market Dubai’s resurgent property market has delivered riches to property owners and shareholders of leading developers like Emaar Properties, but investors in two listed Dubai real estate investment trusts – Emirates REIT and ENBD REIT – are nursing sustained losses. Both trusts are listed on Nasdaq Dubai. The emirate’s international bourse launched in 2005 with the […] December 6, 2023
Manufacturing Saudi Cable financial woes laid bare in delayed results Saudi Cable Company has revealed the crisis it is facing after the manufacturer belatedly published its financial results for 2022. The company, which owns manufacturing facilities in Saudi Arabia, Bahrain and Turkey, posted a net loss of SAR585 million ($156 million) for the year, a 200 percent increase compared with 2021. Saudi Cable said in […] December 4, 2023
Retail Food inflation leads to rise of Gulf discount operators Rising food costs in the Gulf over the last two years have spurred an increase in the number of discount operators entering the market. The food and beverage category of the UAE’s consumer price index rose from 100.3 in 2021 to 107.5 in 2022, and is forecast to rise further to 111.8 in 2023, according […] December 2, 2023
People & Lifestyle MBC Group sets price range for IPO on Tadawul Saudi Arabian media giant MBC Group is planning to raise as much as SAR831 million ($222 million) from the sale of a 10 percent stake on the Saudi stock exchange (Tadawul) after disclosing an indicative price range. The price range was set between SAR23 ($6.13) and SAR25 per share, the company said in a statement, […] December 1, 2023
Finance Dubai Taxi IPO order book hits $41bn on strong demand Dubai Taxi Company said the order book for its initial public offering (IPO) swelled to over AED150 billion ($41 billion), as it was covered 130 times. “This represents the highest oversubscription level achieved by an IPO on the Dubai Financial Market,” the company, a unit of the state-owned Roads and Transport Authority, said in a statement. […] November 30, 2023
Markets Abu Dhabi IPO Fund plans up to four listings by 2024-end Abu Dhabi can expect up to four further listings of private companies by the end of 2024, according to Bassel Khawaja, advisory head of the Abu Dhabi IPO Fund. Speaking on the sidelines of Abu Dhabi Finance Week (ADFW), Khawaja told AGBI the fund is currently assisting three unnamed companies with their IPO readiness. He […] November 29, 2023
Finance Kingdom Holding ups stake in Citigroup with Alwaleed deal Kingdom Holding Company has increased its investment in Citigroup after buying a $450 million stake from its Saudi Arabian billionaire chairman, Prince Alwaleed Bin Talal. The deal has raised Kingdom’s stake to 2.2 percent from 1.63 percent, according to a filing on the Saudi Stock Exchange on Wednesday. The company did not disclose any further […] November 29, 2023
Banking & Finance Aster DM to sell majority stake in Gulf business for $1bn UAE-based hospital chain Aster DM Healthcare will sell a majority stake in its Gulf business to a regional consortium for $1 billion as part of a plan to separate the unit from its Indian operations. A consortium led by state-backed Fajr Capital will own 65 percent of the Gulf business, while Azad Moopen, the founder […] November 29, 2023
Media & Advertising More deals likely to follow OSN+ and Anghami merger The merger last week between OSN+ and Anghami will lead to more consolidation in the region’s streaming sector, industry experts have said. Kuwait’s Kipco-Panther Media Group, which operates as OSN, will combine its streaming service OSN+ with Anghami’s music and entertainment business to create one of the Middle East’s largest streaming platforms. The Europe, Middle […] November 27, 2023
