AlAbraaj Restaurants Group Announces Provisional Results and Allotment Basis of its Initial Public Offering
SICO BSC (c), a leading regional asset manager, broker, and investment bank, with direct presencein Bahrain, Saudi Arabia, and the UAE, announced today the successful closing of the BHD 9 millioninitial public offering (“IPO”) of AlAbraaj Restaurants Group, which was significantly oversubscribedby 2.6 times. These results reflect the provisional reconciliation of the data related to theapplication forms received.
The transaction comprised an offering of 38,181,818 shares at BD 0.236 per share representing35% of the company’s total issued post-IPO share capital. The IPO generated total demand of over99 million shares or over BD 23 million between both the professional and retail tranches.
The IPO is structured with 70% of the shares on offer allocated to professional investors (i.e., thoseapplying for 1.5 million shares or more), while 30% of the shares have been allocated to retailinvestors (i.e., those applying for less than 1.5 million shares). Applications for professional investorsrepresented over 300% of the shares earmarked for this category, and applications for retailinvestors represented over 130% of the shares in the retail category. As a number of professionalinvestors exceeded the maximum allocation possible of 10% of the offer size, their bid will be reducedto such limit and the excess will be allocated to the retail category, allowing for a full allocation ofretail investors. Professional investors will be allotted shares as determined by the lead manager.
Najla Al Shirawi, Group CEO of SICO, stated, “The strong response to AlAbraaj RestaurantsGroup’s IPO is a testament to the appeal of Al Abraaj’s unique value proposition. We are proud tohave played a pivotal role as lead manager in delivering a successful IPO that provides investorswith an opportunity to participate in the growth of the Kingdom’s dynamic F&B sector. We are alsovery proud of our investment banking team’s ability to successfully manage the transaction and generate demand on such an accelerated timeline. The results of the transaction are testament tothe confidence placed in SICO as a lead manager able to deliver the highest success rates, wewould like to extend our utmost appreciation to the subscribers in the IPO and to the Central Bankof Bahrain, Bahrain Bourse and Bahrain Clear on their continuous support and guidance” added Al-Shirawi.
Wissam Haddad, Group Head of Investment Banking at SICO, added, “We are proud to havesuccessfully closed the initial public offer for Al Abraaj, the first family business going public inBahrain since 2005. Going public provides businesses with advantages including another currencyto execute acquisitions through share swaps, wider access to capital, solid transparency andgovernance, and liquidity for shareholders. We are also pleased that our eIPO system attracted50% of the number of applicants to the IPO.”
Hamad Rashed Hilal Isa, Chairman of AlAbraaj Restaurants Group, said, "The success of ourIPO marks a historic milestone for Al Abraaj, and we are deeply grateful for the trust and confidenceour investors have shown. This achievement opens an exciting new chapter, enabling us toaccelerate our regional expansion, enhance our brand portfolio, and create innovative diningexperiences for a broader audience. With SICO’s invaluable support, we are prepared to drive longtermvalue for our shareholders, who have now become part of our family, and to reinforce ourposition as a leading publicly traded company."
Allotment notices will be emailed to investors and will also be available for collection from BahrainClear starting from 12 December and any refunds will be distributed on 15 December. On 19December, the company’s shares will be listed and will trade on the Bahrain Bourse under the tickersymbol ABRAAJ. All applicants that have been allocated shares in the IPO are then eligible to tradeby opening an account with a Bahrain Bourse registered brokerage if they do not already have one.Furthermore, applicants allotted shares in the IPO will be eligible to any dividends distributed by thecompany for the fourth quarter of 2024 (1 October to 31 December 2024) and thereafter. SICO willprovide price stabilization and liquidity provision services from the start of trading on the BahrainBourse. Investors may obtain further information from the investor relations section of Company’swebsite www.alabraajgroup.com
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