Dubai Financial Market (DFM), the operator of the leading stock exchange in the Middle East, has welcomed its first initial public offering (IPO) this year and the listing of shares of Al Ansari Financial Services, the prominent payment and trading services company in the United Arab Emirates (UAE). The shares began trading under the symbol ALANSARI.

Al Ansari Financial Services Becomes UAE's Publicly-Listed Company

According to the DFM's press release, the IPO experienced substantial investor interest, with the offering being oversubscribed 22 times. The tranche for Retail Investors alone experienced an oversubscription of 44 times, leading to an increase in its offer size from 5% to 7.5%, which corresponds to 56.25 million ordinary shares out of the total offering.

The initial public offering drew significant demand from qualified institutional investors and UAE retail investors, with the total gross demand exceeding AED 12.7 billion ($3.45 billion). 750 million shares were sold, and the final share price was established at AED 1.03 ($0.28), resulting in a market capitalization of AED 7.7 billion ($2 billion) upon listing.

"The listing of our shares on the Dubai Financial Market is a landmark moment for Al Ansari Financial Services and one that will set us on a new and exciting chapter in our 57-year history. We also believe that the success of this transaction will further support the UAE's ambitions of deepening and diversifying its capital markets by inspiring other family-owned businesses to follow in our footsteps," Mohammad Ali Al Ansari, the Chairman of the Group, commented.

Al Ansari ceremoniously rang the DFM market opening bell in honor of the listing. He was accompanied by His Excellency Helal Al Marri, the Chairman of the DFM, Rashed Ali Al Ansari, the Group CEO of Al Ansari Financial Services, and Hamed Ali, the CEO of DFM and Nasdaq Dubai, as well as various other officials.

From Family-Owned Business to DFM's Company

Established in 1966 as a family-owned business, Al Ansari Financial Services has grown to become a prominent integrated financial services group in the UAE. As the foremost player in the outward personal remittance and retail foreign exchange market, the company operates over 231 branches across the Emirates. The Group's successful listing demonstrates the effectiveness of DFM's strategic plan to improve and consolidate Dubai's capital markets infrastructure.

"It sets an encouraging precedent for other family businesses to follow suit and help boost economic growth and investor confidence in the UAE," Al Marri commented.

According to the company's website, the Al Ansari Financial Brokerage LLC subsidiary offers margin, mobile, online and short-term trading and access to global shares from other jurisdictions.

On the day of its debut, ALANSARI shares experienced a surge, reaching a 5% increase on the DFM and touching the AED 1.24 mark. The opening price stood at AED 1.20, significantly rising from the AED 1.03 price during the IPO allocation.

DFM Opens to Foreign Trading Partners

The UAE is betting on the continued development of its financial markets, looking to launch an 'oasis' for cryptocurrency companies, among other things. This week, news of an expansion of regional operations was reported by CMC Markets, which is looking to gain clients in the Middle East.

In addition, the DFM is forging new co-operations with foreign trading technology companies. One of them is Swissquote, which has gained access to the stock exchange based in the United Arab Emirates. The Swiss company gained access through the Direct Market Access (DMA) Route of GTN Middle East Financial Services (GTNME), a regional and international institutional brokerage services provider in the Middle East.

Last month, Centroid Solutions, a technology provider in the trading industry, opened its own trading gateway to the Middle Eastern financial markets with its partnership with the DFM. The partnership allows the clients of Centroid to access Dubai-listed securities and financial instruments and offer them locally and globally.

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