The RTA IPOs are significant as they represent public offerings of Dubai government entities, setting a precedent for other public sector entities in the future.
[Find out more – Pathway20, Aurora50’s 12-week board accelerator for women | NOORA, Aurora50’s network for corporate women | The Inclusion Summit, where hundreds of DEI change-makers meet in UAE]
[Related: UAE IPOs 2023 | UAE IPOs 2022 | DEI – part of the ‘S’ and ‘G’ in ESG]
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📈 Under $1 billion raised
📈📈 Over $1 billion raised
📈📈📈 Over $2 billion raised
UAE-based education technology company Alef raised AED1.89 billion ($514 million) when it floated in mid-June on ADX.
Alef is indirectly majority owned by Abu Dhabi Capital Group, a private institutional investment company that has a multi-asset class portfolio across the MENA region.
The company provides artificial intelligence-powered learning and digital education resources to schools in the UAE, Jordan, Indonesia, Morocco and the US.
Its platform serves about 7,000 schools, with about 1.1 million registered students and 50,000 teachers.
UAE IT services company Alpha Data is planning an IPO in Abu Dhabi, which may come as soon as the end of 2024, Bloomberg reports.
Alpha Data is seeking to raise $200 million from the listing, according to Bloomberg.
Founded in 1981, Alpha Data’s technologies encompass artificial intelligence, mobility, security, Internet of Things, big data and cloud computing.
Abu Dhabi’s Etihad Airways has returned to profit and is improving its transparency, governance and balance sheet to be ready for an IPO – should its sovereign wealth fund owner decide to list it, CEO Antonoaldo Neves said in May.
The UAE’s national carrier on Wednesday posted net profits for 2022 and 2023 after a run of losses since 2016.
Etihad is owned by Abu Dhabi wealth fund ADQ, which has listed several holdings since 2022.
It would be the first Gulf carrier to go public and has added banks to its planned IPO that could raise as much as $1 billion, Bloomberg reports.
[Read full story on Etihad Airways on Bloomberg (subscription)]
LuLu supermarket group plans to list on ADX in November 2024.
It plans to list 25 per cent of its share capital on the Abu Dhabi bourse.
All shares offered through the public float are being sold by the company’s sole shareholder, Lulu International Holdings.
UAE retail investors, including employees of the group, as well as institutional investors and eligible senior executives of the company will be able to subscribe to the offering.
LuLu, one of the largest supermarket chains in the Gulf, is founded by Indian-born businessman Yusuff Ali.
It operates 254 hypermarkets and shopping malls in 10 countries including India, Egypt, Malaysia and Indonesia.
The company aims to start 80 more hypermarkets in GCC and other countries in the next two years.
LuLu originally planned its IPO for 2023. It could raise as much as $2 billion.
In June, UAE-based hospital operator NMC Healthcare appointed Rothschild as a financial adviser to help explore strategic options for its shareholders, including an IPO.
NMC Healthcare CEO David Hadley said: “The market is witnessing rapid population growth and presents an attractive opportunity to provide high quality medical services across diverse and changing demographics.
“We are committed to delivering continued value to our stakeholders and the millions of patients we serve every year.”
In March, Parkin Company raised $429 million on DFM in the UAE’s first IPO of the year.
Parkin, owned by the Dubai Investment Fund, is the largest provider of paid parking in the UAE.
This is the third Roads and Transport Authority (RTA) asset to have listed after Salik and the Dubai Taxi Company (DTC).
Delivery Hero, the Germany-based food delivery platform, announced in August that it is preparing to list shares of its UAE subsidiary, Talabat, on the Dubai bourse DFM in Q4 2024.
Reuters said shares had fallen around 85% from their January 2021 highs as investors shunned food delivery stocks after a pandemic frenzy.
“We think it’s a good time for us to be having regional investors participate in this business,” interim finance chief Marie-Anne Popp told Reuters, without providing details on how the company intends to use proceeds from the IPO.
The Gender Balance Council launched the Gender Balance Centre for Excellence in Dubai yesterday in partnership with the World Bank, in its drive to promote parity in the UAE and region.
Another 18 private-sector companies have signed the UAE Gender Balance Council’s SDG 5 pledge to put women in 30% of senior roles by 2025.
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