Saudi stock exchange seeks to raise up to $1 billion via initial offering

Saudi Arabia is keeping the home fires burning for regional public offerings, readying what could be the biggest sale of shares by a stock-exchange operator since Euronext NV.

 

Saudi Tadawul Group Holding is seeking to raise as much as $1 billion after setting the price range for an initial public offering at 95 riyals ($25.32) to 105 riyals per share, the company said on Sunday.

 

The Riyadh-based bourse, on which oil giant Saudi Aramco trades, plans to sell a 30 per cent stake, or 36 million shares.

 

The offering comes amid an IPO boom, with companies around the world raising a record of more than $600 billion this year. Against that backdrop, Saudi Arabia has been among the leaders in the Middle East, listing private and family-owned firms as well as companies such as ACWA Power International, backed by the kingdom’s wealth fund, and Saudi Telecom Co.’s internet-services unit.