Stock Markets MENA's 2024 IPOs Garnered $1.7B

MENA saw four initial public offerings IPOs) hit the main markets in Q1 this year up to March 21, 2024, with 1.7 billion in combined proceeds. Here’s a look into the details.

- HAGAR OMRAN

1. Crédit Populaire d’Algérie (CPA Bank)

IPO value: $837.5 million
Market: Algiers Stock Exchange
Sector: Banking

In January 2024, CPA Bank, a state-owned Algerian bank, announced its plan to offer 60 million shares, representing 30% of its capital, to private investors at a price of nearly $17 per share, resulting in an IPO proceed worth $1 billion.

In the first of three stages, the bank intended to offer 22 million shares with a subscription period from January 30, 2024, to February 28, 2024. The subscription period was then extended to March 14, 2024, due to high demand, with 81.6% of the 60 million offered shares subscribed, according to Youcef Bouzenada, Chairman of COSOB at Algiers Stock Exchange. This resulted in an IPO process worth $837.5 million. The second and third stages of the IPO process have been canceled, and the remaining shares will be sold directly in the secondary market.

The Algerian government views the IPO as part of its efforts to boost publicprivate partnerships and drive economic development. The IPO indicates promising prospects for the financial sector and demonstrates the potential of the national capital market.

According to the IPO prospectus, the bank’s total assets experienced a year-onyear increase of 8.1% in 2022, reaching $24.5 billion. The bank’s net profit also rose by 23.2% in 2022, hitting $273.2 million.

2. Parkin