The UAE's first initial public offering (IPO) in more than two years will go forward after just meeting the capital requirements necessary to list, company officials said.
Insurance House raised Dh66 million (US$17.9m) in the two weeks since offering subscriptions but reached the threshold only hours before a 5pm deadline on Wednesday.
"We had doubts that it would close," said a spokesman for Insurance House. "We crossed the Dh66m coverage midday yesterday."
The listing was open only to UAE nationals and required a minimum subscription of 25,000 shares per investor. The shares sold comprise 55 per cent of Insurance House, with the company's board owning the remaining 45 per cent.
Non-nationals can buy shares in the company after it is listed on the Abu Dhabi Securities Exchange (ADX). A listing date has not yet been announced.
According to UAE regulations, all new insurance companies must be publicly listed, with a minimum capital of Dh100m and at least 55 per cent of shares sold to the public.
Most subscription requests were for the minimum amount of 25,000 shares, although some investors bought a "couple of million" shares, said Majd Maaitah, the director of securities services at National Bank of Abu Dhabi, one of the four receiving banks for the IPO.
"We had a variance between small and big investors, and I received quite a good number of applications," Mr Maaitah said.
Had the IPO not met the capital requirements, Insurance House would have had been obliged to ask the Emirates Securities and Commodities Authority for an extension of a few days, Mr Maaitah said.
The Insurance House spokesman said the company was pleased to move forward with the listing given difficult market conditions.
In line with a slump in markets across the region, the ADX has shed 4.5 per cent of its value amid unrest across the Mena region in the period since Zine el Abidine Ben Ali was overthrown as Tunisian president in January. Even before the unrest began, UAE markets were in the midst of an extended period of low trading volumes.
An IPO by Axiom Telecom, a mobile phone retailer based in Dubai, was scrapped at the end of last year because of poor market conditions.
fhalime@thenational.ae
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Other workplace saving schemes
- The UAE government announced a retirement savings plan for private and free zone sector employees in 2023.
- Dubai’s savings retirement scheme for foreign employees working in the emirate’s government and public sector came into effect in 2022.
- National Bonds unveiled a Golden Pension Scheme in 2022 to help private-sector foreign employees with their financial planning.
- In April 2021, Hayah Insurance unveiled a workplace savings plan to help UAE employees save for their retirement.
- Lunate, an Abu Dhabi-based investment manager, has launched a fund that will allow UAE private companies to offer employees investment returns on end-of-service benefits.
COMPANY PROFILE
Name: Almnssa
Started: August 2020
Founder: Areej Selmi
Based: Gaza
Sectors: Internet, e-commerce
Investments: Grants/private funding
Formula Middle East Calendar (Formula Regional and Formula 4)
Round 1: January 17-19, Yas Marina Circuit – Abu Dhabi
Round 2: January 22-23, Yas Marina Circuit – Abu Dhabi
Round 3: February 7-9, Dubai Autodrome – Dubai
Round 4: February 14-16, Yas Marina Circuit – Abu Dhabi
Round 5: February 25-27, Jeddah Corniche Circuit – Saudi Arabia
Scoreline
Germany 2
Werner 9', Sane 19'
Netherlands 2
Promes 85', Van Dijk 90'
Dirham Stretcher tips for having a baby in the UAE
Selma Abdelhamid, the group's moderator, offers her guide to guide the cost of having a young family:
• Buy second hand stuff
They grow so fast. Don't get a second hand car seat though, unless you 100 per cent know it's not expired and hasn't been in an accident.
• Get a health card and vaccinate your child for free at government health centres
Ms Ma says she discovered this after spending thousands on vaccinations at private clinics.
• Join mum and baby coffee mornings provided by clinics, babysitting companies or nurseries.
Before joining baby classes ask for a free trial session. This way you will know if it's for you or not. You'll be surprised how great some classes are and how bad others are.
• Once baby is ready for solids, cook at home
Take the food with you in reusable pouches or jars. You'll save a fortune and you'll know exactly what you're feeding your child.
The Greatest Royal Rumble card as it stands
50-man Royal Rumble - names entered so far include Braun Strowman, Daniel Bryan, Kurt Angle, Big Show, Kane, Chris Jericho, The New Day and Elias
Universal Championship Brock Lesnar (champion) v Roman Reigns in a steel cage match
WWE World Heavyweight Championship AJ Styles (champion) v Shinsuke Nakamura
Intercontinental Championship Seth Rollins (champion) v The Miz v Finn Balor v Samoa Joe
United States Championship Jeff Hardy (champion) v Jinder Mahal
SmackDown Tag Team Championship The Bludgeon Brothers (champions) v The Usos
Raw Tag Team Championship (currently vacant) Cesaro and Sheamus v Matt Hardy and Bray Wyatt
Casket match The Undertaker v Chris Jericho
Singles match John Cena v Triple H
Cruiserweight Championship Cedric Alexander v tba
The specs
Engine: 2.4-litre 4-cylinder
Transmission: CVT auto
Power: 181bhp
Torque: 244Nm
Price: Dh122,900
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The%20Killer
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Various Artists
Habibi Funk: An Eclectic Selection Of Music From The Arab World (Habibi Funk)
THE SPECS
Engine: 6.75-litre twin-turbocharged V12 petrol engine
Power: 420kW
Torque: 780Nm
Transmission: 8-speed automatic
Price: From Dh1,350,000
On sale: Available for preorder now
Brief scoreline:
Manchester United 2
Rashford 28', Martial 72'
Watford 1
Doucoure 90'