MENA maintains IPO momentum, raises $1.8bn Q2 2023

MENA maintains IPO momentum, raises $1.8bn Q2 2023

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Middle East companies raised $1.8bn in proceeds from 13 initial public offerings (IPOs) in the second quarter of 2023, a 44 per cent increase in the number of listings but an 80 per cent drop in proceeds compared to a year ago, according to consulting firm EY.

The momentum in Q2 2023 was driven predominately by Saudi Arabia and the UAE.

The kingdom dominated MENA IPO activity in terms of the number of listings, with four listings on the Saudi Exchange’s (Tadawul) main market raising $0.8bn. Similarly, seven IPOs on Tadawul’s Nomu parallel market raise $0.1bn in proceeds.

Jamjoom Pharmaceuticals Factory Company raised $336m, the highest raise on the Tadawul for the quarter, followed by First Milling Company which raised $266.4m.

“Both offered a free float of 30 per cent of the company’s share capital and were oversubscribed,” said EY.

ADNOC L&S drew orders worth $125bn for its $769m IPO on the Abu Dhabi Securities Exchange (ADX) – the largest listing for the quarter. EY said ADNOC L&S’ IPO saw the largest demand globally for a transaction so far in 2023, with an oversubscription level of 163x in aggregate – the highest oversubscription for a UAE book-build IPO.

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