{"id":83146,"date":"2024-02-06T00:00:00","date_gmt":"2024-02-06T00:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/enterpriseam.com\/ksa\/2024\/02\/06\/hypermarket-operator-lulu-is-said-to-be-shopping-for-bankers-as-it-eyes-ipo-on-tadawul-and-adx\/"},"modified":"2024-02-06T00:00:00","modified_gmt":"2024-02-06T00:00:00","slug":"hypermarket-operator-lulu-is-said-to-be-shopping-for-bankers-as-it-eyes-ipo-on-tadawul-and-adx","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/enterpriseam.com\/ksa\/2024\/02\/06\/hypermarket-operator-lulu-is-said-to-be-shopping-for-bankers-as-it-eyes-ipo-on-tadawul-and-adx\/","title":{"rendered":"Hypermarket operator LuLu is said to be shopping for bankers as it eyes IPO on Tadawul and ADX"},"content":{"rendered":"

Good morning, wonderful people. <\/strong>Happy hump day to you all \u2014 two more after today and we can all slide into the weekend. <\/p>\n

Driving the conversation this morning: The World Defense Show<\/strong>, as we suggested on Sunday might be the case. We also have coverage this morning of the latest purchasing managers\u2019 index<\/strong> (no real surprises), Saudi Electricity<\/strong>\u2019s roadshow for its newest sukuk, SNB Capital<\/strong>\u2019s new real estate fund, and Kazyon<\/strong>\u2019s acquisition of a 50% stake in Dukan<\/strong>, the country\u2019s only hard discounter. <\/p>\n

<\/a> BUT FIRST- <\/strong>LuLu Group International<\/a><\/strong>, the operator of the iconic supermarket chain, is <\/strong>shopping around for bankers <\/strong>for a potential dual-listing on the ADX and Riyadh\u2019s Tadawul in 2H 2024, Bloomberg<\/a> reported overnight. The offering could be worth as much as USD 1 bn, the business information service says, citing sources it says have knowledge of the company\u2019s plans. <\/p>\n

Abu Dhabi-headquartered LuLu is likely to list its GCC assets in the transaction. <\/strong>The company valued itself at north of USD 5 bn in 2020 when it sold a stake to Abu Dhabi wealth fund ADQ and last explored the possibility of an IPO in 2022. LuLu was thought in late 2023 to have been discussing the potential sale of a stake to Saudi Arabia\u2019s Public Investment Fund.<\/p>\n

In context: <\/strong>Dual listings on the UAE and Saudi Arabia are rare. MENA restaurant operator Americana Restaurants<\/a> went for an ADX + Tadawul listing in 2022. LuLu declined to comment on Bloomberg\u2019s report. <\/p>\n

By the numbers: <\/strong>LuLu has 18 hypermarkets and seven shopping malls in its pipeline<\/a> as it pushes ahead with aggressive growth plans. It has some 70k employees across more than two dozen countries, but its centers of gravity are the GCC, India and, more recently, Egypt.<\/p>\n

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<\/a> HAPPENING TODAY- The <\/strong>PIF Private Sector Forum<\/a><\/strong> runs today and tomorrow in Riyadh.<\/strong>The event will bring together the fund, portfolio companies, and the private sector.<\/p>\n

PSA #1- <\/strong>The Zakat, Tax and Customs Authority (Zatca) is again warning <\/strong>about fake <\/strong>text messages and emails asking taxpayers for banking data<\/strong> for refunds, Mubasher<\/a> reports. The authority only requests personal information through official channels including its website<\/a> and its mobile applications.<\/p>\n

<\/a> PSA #2- Is your spawn about to apply to college abroad? <\/strong>We have two stories you\u2019ll want to know about this morning: <\/p>\n