The UAE's momentum of initial public offerings will continue for a couple more years, as the country presses forward with measures to boost foreign investment and economic development that enhance its competitiveness, the chief executive of an Abu Dhabi-based securities broker has said.
The surge in IPOs has been the main catalyst supporting the performance of equity markets, and the listing of companies from diverse sectors such as utilities, logistics and health care has also added more depth, Ayman Hamed of International Securities told The National in an interview.
“If the spate of IPOs in the UAE continues the way it has … over the past few years, we will see more inflows coming in from foreign and regional institutions, and will also encourage more and more retail participation in the market,” he said.
Middle East IPOs raised more than $23 billion in 2022 from 48 listings, compared with $7.52 billion raised from 20 offerings in the previous year.
That was the highest share for the Gulf region after 2019, when Saudi Aramco went public in a $29 billion offering, the world’s largest.
Abu Dhabi accounted for 14 per cent of all listings worldwide in the first quarter of 2023, an indication of the strength of its capital markets amid a challenging global IPO market, consultancy EY said in the latest Global IPO Trends report.
The UAE capital attracted $3 billion worth of listing proceeds in the first quarter of this year, placing it third worldwide, with Adnoc Gas raising about Dh9.1 billion ($2.5 billion) from the sale of a 5 per cent stake.
“If you look at the 2022 stock market performance in the GCC, ADX [Abu Dhabi Securities Exchange] was the top performer in the region in terms of the size of the IPOs as well as in terms of the index performance,” Mr Hamed said.
Over the past few years, the market turnover on the ADX has surged.
In 2020, the average daily market turnover was in the range of Dh200 million to Dh300 million. Currently, it is in the range of Dh1 billion to Dh1.5 billion, according to Mr Hamed.
International Securities started dealing in IPOs in March 2020 at the start of the Covid-19 pandemic. The broker's transactions with IPOs yielded encouraging results in the form of higher investor participation and turnover, he said.
A subsidiary of Abu Dhabi-listed International Holding Company since 2019, International Securities was previously known as Integrated Securities and was part of Shuaa Capital.
In November 2019, IHC acquired Shuaa Securities and Integrated Securities was rebranded as International Securities.
“Over the years, the number of clients we manage grew to surpass 25,000, comprising local, international, institutional and retail investors,” Mr Hamed said.
Its institutional clients include family offices, sovereign wealth funds, private banks, and regional and international fund managers.
“Since 2021, our turnover has been the highest in the UAE. Currently, our market share exceeds 60 per cent in terms of the total turnover combining both ADX and DFM [Dubai Financial Market] markets,” he said.
The company's trading volumes on the ADX and the DFM jumped to a combined Dh570 billion in 2022, from Dh15 billion in 2019.
Going forward, ADX’s depth and breadth will further expand as more markets are added to its Tabadul network, he said.
In July last year, ADX and Bahrain Bourse launched the Tabadul Exchange Hub, the GCC's first digital exchange hub, aimed at boosting market and economic relations between the two countries.
A few months later, ADX signed agreements with Muscat bourse and the sultanate’s Clearing and Depository Company that allow dual listing of Muscat-traded companies in Abu Dhabi.
Currently, stocks traded on both Bahrain's and Oman's stock exchanges can directly be traded on the Tabadul exchange on ADX.
“Tabadul is a very efficient tool to penetrate more markets and enable investors to trade in stocks from different markets through a single stockbroker. I hope more markets from the region will join Tabadul network, which will enhance the market liquidity across the region,” said Mr Hamed.
In terms of sectors, he is bullish on energy and technology.
“Energy will continue to be the super star in addition to artificial intelligence companies. In addition, there are defensive sectors such as utilities, food and health care, which are good from a long-term dividend perspective,” he said.
The specs: 2019 Mercedes-Benz GLE
Price, base / as tested Dh274,000 (estimate)
Engine 3.0-litre inline six-cylinder
Gearbox Nine-speed automatic
Power 245hp @ 4,200rpm
Torque 500Nm @ 1,600rpm
Fuel economy, combined 6.4L / 100km
Tearful appearance
Chancellor Rachel Reeves set markets on edge as she appeared visibly distraught in parliament on Wednesday.
Legislative setbacks for the government have blown a new hole in the budgetary calculations at a time when the deficit is stubbornly large and the economy is struggling to grow.
She appeared with Keir Starmer on Thursday and the pair embraced, but he had failed to give her his backing as she cried a day earlier.
A spokesman said her upset demeanour was due to a personal matter.
Abu Dhabi World Pro 2019 remaining schedule:
Wednesday April 24: Abu Dhabi World Professional Jiu-Jitsu Championship, 11am-6pm
Thursday April 25: Abu Dhabi World Professional Jiu-Jitsu Championship, 11am-5pm
Friday April 26: Finals, 3-6pm
Saturday April 27: Awards ceremony, 4pm and 8pm
The specs
Engine: 0.8-litre four cylinder
Power: 70bhp
Torque: 66Nm
Transmission: four-speed manual
Price: $1,075 new in 1967, now valued at $40,000
On sale: Models from 1966 to 1970
Everton%20Fixtures
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ESSENTIALS
The flights
Emirates flies from Dubai to Phnom Penh via Yangon from Dh2,700 return including taxes. Cambodia Bayon Airlines and Cambodia Angkor Air offer return flights from Phnom Penh to Siem Reap from Dh250 return including taxes. The flight takes about 45 minutes.
The hotels
Rooms at the Raffles Le Royal in Phnom Penh cost from $225 (Dh826) per night including taxes. Rooms at the Grand Hotel d'Angkor cost from $261 (Dh960) per night including taxes.
The tours
A cyclo architecture tour of Phnom Penh costs from $20 (Dh75) per person for about three hours, with Khmer Architecture Tours. Tailor-made tours of all of Cambodia, or sites like Angkor alone, can be arranged by About Asia Travel. Emirates Holidays also offers packages.
Key facilities
- Olympic-size swimming pool with a split bulkhead for multi-use configurations, including water polo and 50m/25m training lanes
- Premier League-standard football pitch
- 400m Olympic running track
- NBA-spec basketball court with auditorium
- 600-seat auditorium
- Spaces for historical and cultural exploration
- An elevated football field that doubles as a helipad
- Specialist robotics and science laboratories
- AR and VR-enabled learning centres
- Disruption Lab and Research Centre for developing entrepreneurial skills
Series info
Test series schedule 1st Test, Abu Dhabi: Sri Lanka won by 21 runs; 2nd Test, Dubai: Play starts at 2pm, Friday-Tuesday
ODI series schedule 1st ODI, Dubai: October 13; 2nd ODI, Abu Dhabi: October 16; 3rd ODI, Abu Dhabi: October 18; 4th ODI, Sharjah: October 20; 5th ODI, Sharjah: October 23
T20 series schedule 1st T20, Abu Dhabi: October 26; 2nd T20, Abu Dhabi: October 27; 3rd T20, Lahore: October 29
Tickets Available at www.q-tickets.com
Stat Fourteen Fourteen of the past 15 Test matches in the UAE have been decided on the final day. Both of the previous two Tests at Dubai International Stadium have been settled in the last session. Pakistan won with less than an hour to go against West Indies last year. Against England in 2015, there were just three balls left.
Key battle - Azhar Ali v Rangana Herath Herath may not quite be as flash as Muttiah Muralitharan, his former spin-twin who ended his career by taking his 800th wicket with his final delivery in Tests. He still has a decent sense of an ending, though. He won the Abu Dhabi match for his side with 11 wickets, the last of which was his 400th in Tests. It was not the first time he has owned Pakistan, either. A quarter of all his Test victims have been Pakistani. If Pakistan are going to avoid a first ever series defeat in the UAE, Azhar, their senior batsman, needs to stand up and show the way to blunt Herath.
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
Benefits of first-time home buyers' scheme
- Priority access to new homes from participating developers
- Discounts on sales price of off-plan units
- Flexible payment plans from developers
- Mortgages with better interest rates, faster approval times and reduced fees
- DLD registration fee can be paid through banks or credit cards at zero interest rates
David Haye record
Total fights: 32
Wins: 28
Wins by KO: 26
Losses: 4
Vidaamuyarchi
Director: Magizh Thirumeni
Stars: Ajith Kumar, Arjun Sarja, Trisha Krishnan, Regina Cassandra
Rating: 4/5
Godzilla%20x%20Kong%3A%20The%20New%20Empire
%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EDirector%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3EAdam%20Wingard%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EStarring%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3EBrian%20Tyree%20Henry%2C%20Rebecca%20Hall%2C%20Dan%20Stevens%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3ERating%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%204%2F5%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
The specs
- Engine: 3.9-litre twin-turbo V8
- Power: 640hp
- Torque: 760nm
- On sale: 2026
- Price: Not announced yet
The%20specs
%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EPowertrain%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3ESingle%20electric%20motor%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EPower%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3E201hp%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3ETorque%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3E310Nm%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3ETransmission%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3ESingle-speed%20auto%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EBattery%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3E53kWh%20lithium-ion%20battery%20pack%20(GS%20base%20model)%3B%2070kWh%20battery%20pack%20(GF)%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3ETouring%20range%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3E350km%20(GS)%3B%20480km%20(GF)%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EPrice%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3EFrom%20Dh129%2C900%20(GS)%3B%20Dh149%2C000%20(GF)%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EOn%20sale%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Now%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
