Long-term policy initiatives supporting the development of capital markets in the Middle East are paying off, with stock markets across the region supporting a cluster of large state-backed and private sector IPOs in 2024
The Middle East had an exceptionally strong 2024 for IPOs, with the long-term initiatives of governments in the United Arab Emirates (UAE), Saudi Arabia and Oman laying the foundation for robust listing activity.
Middle East IPO proceeds climbed to US$13.42 billion in 2024, up more than 20 percent from the US$10.81 billion raised in 2023.
View full image: Middle East IPO deal value and market value, 2018 – 2024 (PDF)
View full image: Middle East IPO count, 2018 – 2024 (PDF)
The region's IPO surge has been driven by the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) states, with the UAE and Saudi Arabia, in particular, emerging as leading venues for IPO activity in Europe, the Middle East and Africa (EMEA). Meanwhile, Oman has witnessed several international IPOs in 2023 and 2024, including the IPO of OQ Exploration Production (OQEP), the exploration and production division of state-owned energy company OQ, which raised US$2 billion.
View full image: Top-10 IPOs, Middle East exchanges, by deal value, in 2024 (PDF)
Momentum in Oman has continued into 2025, with Asyad Shipping, a subsidiary of the Asyad Group, pricing its IPO early in March and raising more than US$330 million.
Long-term policies bear fruit
Buoyant IPO markets in the Middle East represent the success of long-term policies implemented across the region to diversify economies dominated by oil & gas, and modernize legal and regulatory frameworks supporting capital formation.
Policymakers have worked hard to grow domestic capital markets and make IPOs more transparent and attractive to local and domestic investors, including retail investors and family offices, who have historically opted for other wealth management or investment opportunities rather than investing it in equities and putting money to work in other sectors of the economy.
Successful initiatives to develop stock markets have enabled governments to realize value from state-owned assets (predominantly in the energy and infrastructure sectors) through IPOs and subsequently reinvesting those proceeds to diversify their economies into new sectors, including technology, tourism and renewables.
More sophisticated stock markets have also meant that companies fully or partially owned by the state have been able to secure funding raised through capital markets rather than rely entirely on government financing.
From public to private
The willingness of governments in the Middle East to take successful, state-owned companies to IPO has been a powerful signal of confidence in the credibility of regional stock markets.
The landmark IPO of state-owned oil company Saudi Aramco on Tadawul, Saudi Arabia's stock exchange, in 2019 has served as an inflection point for IPOs across the Middle East. Saudi Aramco's 2019 IPO raised approximately US$29 billion for the state and valued Saudi Aramco at US$1.7 trillion, proving that stock markets in the Middle East had the liquidity, depth and sophistication to handle big IPOs.
The Saudi Aramco IPO opened the gate for a wave of other state-owned company IPOs in other jurisdictions. For example, in the UAE, Dubai Electricity and Water Authority (DEWA) raised US$6.1 billion from its IPO in 2022.
These successful listings of state-owned businesses have encouraged private companies in the UAE to come to the market, diversifying the issuer base and attracting more investors to stock markets. For example, in 2024, food delivery company Talabat raised US$2 billion from its IPO on the Dubai Financial Market (DFM), with supermarket Lulu Retail securing US$1.7 billion through its IPO on the Abu Dhabi Stock Exchange (ADX).
Saudi Arabia and the UAE may have led the way when it comes to providing favorable conditions for new listings, but other countries, most notably Oman, have adopted a similar strategy by reforming legal and regulatory frameworks and then pushing ahead with the IPOs of state-owned companies. The state-owned OQ group raised US$749 million and US$244 million from the OQ Gas Networks SAOG (OQGN) and Abraj Energy IPOs, respectively, in Oman in 2023.
International interest and more state-backed listings bode well
A strong slate of IPO candidates—both state-owned and private—and sustained interest from international investors in the Middle East put the region on firm footing at the start of 2025.
In Saudi Arabia, according to Bloomberg, low-cost airline Flynas and technology business Ejada may be among the businesses to test the IPO waters in the coming months. Oman has identified about 30 assets that could be privatized, including Asyad Group, according to Bloomberg.
A steady pipeline of candidates should keep global investors interested in the region and eager to invest in the Middle East. Global tracker funds, passive fund managers and global sovereign wealth funds have been among the overseas investors that have increased their exposure to the region. IPOs are also expected to become a credible exit event for private equity funds looking to take minority stakes in regional companies, which will boost private money investments.
Increased international investor interest will not only support new listings, but also help boost liquidity and trading in secondary markets.
An encouraging cohort of IPO candidates and deepening liquidity in secondary markets mean that 2025 could be even better for IPOs in the Middle East.
