Dubai plans to encourage private and family-owned businesses to list on its stock exchange as the business hub attempts to catch up with Abu Dhabi and Riyadh in the Middle East IPO rush.
According to a statement, the city merged its economic and tourism departments on Saturday, and one of the new entity’s main tasks is to prepare private and family-owned businesses to sell shares in Dubai.
On Sunday, the UAE markets regulator said it had signed an agreement with the Dubai Airport Free Zone Authority to enable companies operating in Dafza to offer their shares to the public. According to information on Dafza’s website, the free zone is home to over 1,800 registered businesses from over 20 sectors and industries, and is not part of Dubai International Airport.
Over the past week, Dubai has made a series of moves designed to attract listings to the city and catch up with regional rivals that have pulled out billions of dollars in the past year. This includes plans to overhaul the board of the local stock exchange and list state-owned utility DEWA – one of 10 planned in the coming months.
Some well-known private firms and family-owned businesses in Dubai include Majid Al Futaim Holding, operator of Carrefour SA stores in the Middle East, and Al Khaleej Sugar Company, owner of the world’s largest port-based sugar refiner.
This story has been published without modification in text from a wire agency feed.
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