Latest news with #AlwaleedTalal
Business Times
12-05-2025
- Business
- Business Times
Flynas' US$1.1 billion Saudi Arabia IPO sells out in minutes
[DUBAI] Saudi Arabia's Flynas had demand for all the shares on offer in its US$1.1 billion initial public offering minutes after books opened, indicating continued demand for listings in the kingdom despite market volatility. The low-cost carrier and some of its shareholders are selling a 30 per cent stake – 51.26 million shares – at 76 (S$26.50) to 80 riyals apiece, according to a statement on Monday (May 12). Institutional investors fully covered the order book throughout the price range, according to terms of the deal seen by Bloomberg News. Bookbuilding for institutional investors runs until May 18. The top end of the price range implies a valuation of 13.7 billion riyals (S$4.77 billion). The IPO on the Riyadh exchange includes both newly issued shares and stock sold by existing investors – billionaire Prince Alwaleed Talal's Kingdom Holding and National Flight Services. Proceeds will be used to expand Flynas' fleet and establish new operational hubs. The deal would make Flynas the first Gulf airline to go public in almost two decades, and would precede an expected US$1 billion listing of Abu Dhabi flag carrier Etihad Airways. Several Middle Eastern firms are moving forward with IPO plans despite market volatility sparked by US trade policies. While the region is seen as relatively insulated from tariffs, prolonged low oil prices pose a key risk to growth. A hospital operator and a packaging manufacturer have also launched new share sales in Riyadh in recent weeks, and a tech firm is set to follow suit. In Dubai, a conglomerate owned by the emirate's ruler is planning to list a real estate investment trust amid the city's property boom. Flynas reported revenue of US$2 billion and net profit of US$116 million in 2024. BLOOMBERG
Business Times
12-05-2025
- Business
- Business Times
Saudi airline flynas launches IPO to raise up to US$1.1 billion
[DUBAI] Saudi Arabian budget airline flynas, backed by billionaire Prince Alwaleed Talal, is seeking to raise up to US$1.1 billion from an initial public offering in Riyadh, it said on Monday (May 12). The airline, which is selling a 30 per cent stake to investors in the first IPO by a Gulf airline in almost 20 years, said the price range had been set at between 76 (S$26.50) and 80 riyals per share, implying a market capitalisation of up to US$3.6 billion. Saudi Arabia has targeted tourism as a key pillar of its domestic economic agenda to reduce reliance on oil revenue. The kingdom, which attracts tens of millions of religious pilgrims a year to holy Muslim sites in Mecca and Medina, has revamped its tourism industry to attract non-religious visitors. The listing would be only the third by a Gulf airline after the United Arab Emirates' Air Arabia and Kuwait's Jazeera Airways. The institutional book-building subscription period, which started on Monday, will close on May 18, flynas said, adding that 34 per cent of net the IPO's net proceeds will be used to finance the airline's growth strategy and for general corporate purposes. Part of the remaining proceeds will be distributed to selling shareholders, which include Kingdom Holding Company, the investment company founded by Prince Alwaleed. REUTERS
