Lulu Retail’s initial public offering (IPO) raised Dh6.32 billion, making it the largest UAE IPO of 2024 to date. The offering was priced at Dh2.04 per share, at the top of the announced price range, with a market capitalisation of Dh21.07 billion.
The IPO generated overwhelming demand, with total subscriptions surpassing Dh135 billion, oversubscribed by more than 25 times across all tranches. This marks a record for a non-government UAE IPO in the past decade.
The offering was expanded by 5% on Monday, increasing the size to 30% of Lulu Retail’s shares, amounting to over 3.09 billion shares, up from the initial 2.58 billion. The additional 516 million shares were allocated to professional investors, marking significant interest from institutional backers.
The Lulu IPO also saw exceptional retail investor participation, with over 82,000 individuals subscribing to the offering, a historic high for a UAE IPO.
Lulu Retail’s CEO, Saifee Rupawala, expressed pride in the strong demand and highlighted the confidence investors have in the company’s future. Shares will be listed on the Abu Dhabi Securities Exchange on November 14.
The IPO also attracted significant cornerstone investment, including a $100 million commitment from Emirates International Investment Company, with investors subject to a 180-day lock-up period.
The overwhelming success of the Lulu Retail IPO follows a trend of high-demand public offerings in the UAE, with other companies such as Dewa, Salik, and Parkin seeing similarly strong interest in recent IPOs.
