Al Ansari Exchange is Dubai’s first IPO for 2023, floating 10% and promises dividend payout of Dh600m

Al Ansari Exchange is Dubai’s first IPO for 2023, floating 10% and promises dividend payout of Dh600m

Dubai: Al Ansari Financial Services will be the first Dubai IPO of 2023, offering 750 million shares for 10 per cent of the company's existing share capital. For retail investors, the subscriptions will run from March 16 to 23, while that for qualified investors, it would end on March 24. The listing on DFM will happen 'on or around April 6'. The price band for IPO has not been revealed. Potential subscribers will obviously have a close look at the dividend promise - the company will adopt a semi-annual dividend distribution policy. Al Ansari is targeting a 'minimum dividend of Dh600 million' for 2023, with the first payment being made in October and the second in April 2024. A minimum dividend payout of at least 70 per cent of net profit is expected. The price band for IPO has not been revealed. In 2022, the entity had a net profit of Dh595 million, helped by a wide network of remittance outlets and having taken additional market share since 2020 from the then market-leader, UAE Exchange Centre. Remittances provide the bulk of Al Ansari Financial Services' revenues, and last year, it provided Dh737 million of an operating income of Dh1.15 billion.