
Boursa Kuwait/Supplied
by Kudakwashe MuzoriwaThe Kuwait Capital Market Authority (CMA) said that the sale of its stake in Boursa Kuwait to Kuwaiti citizens was more than 8.5 times oversubscribed, in the last stage of the company’s privatisation process.
The initial public offering of 50 per cent of Boursa Kuwait Securities Company, led and managed by KAMCO Investment Company, is the second and final phase of the privatisation process of Boursa Kuwait which followed the sale of 44 per cent of the company to strategic investors in February 2019, said the CMA.
The first phase took place through an open and transparent bidding process, a strategic consortium consisting of local investors and international securities exchange operators acquired a 44 per cent stake in the company.
The consortium comprised of Hellenic Exchanges-Athens Stock Exchange Holding, National Investments Company as well as First Investment Company and Arzan Financial Group.
Ahmad A. Al-Melhem, Kuwait CMA Chairman and Managing Director, said, “As a result of the successful closure of the offering, Boursa Kuwait has become the only stock exchange operator in the Middle East that is not owned by the state.”
The remaining six per cent of the exchange is owned by the state-run Public Institute for Social Security.
MSCI plans to add Kuwait to its main emerging markets stock index in June 2020, an upgrade that investors anticipate will draw billions of dollars of inflows. According to a local daily, Kuwait is working to develop its economy with the goal of transforming itself into a leading regional financial and commercial centre by 2035.
The IPO, which closed on 1 December 2019, was offered only to Kuwaiti citizens at 100 fils per share.
MOST READ
HALAL ECONOMY
UBS launches new private client programHALAL ECONOMY
Jordan agrees $1.3 billion IMF programme