ABU DHABI/LONDON: United Arab Emirates-based Finablr had to cut the price on its initial public offering as the payments and foreign exchange company faced weak investor demand in jittery markets which also rocked ride-hailing app Uber’s Wall Street debut.
Finablr was priced at 175 pence per share, the bookrunner said on Tuesday, significantly below an initially anticipated 210-260 pence range, giving the company an implied market value of about 1.23 billion pounds ($1.59 billion).
Books were covered at full value of the deal worth 192.5 million shares, according to a message seen by Reuters from a bookrunner, which means the share offering will raise about 337 million pounds.
The deal size includes a revised base deal size of 175 million shares and 17.5 million of over-allotment option shares, the bookrunner said.
This came after global stock markets tumbled on Monday as the trade dispute between the United States and China escalated.
In the UAE, where the company is based, both stock markets in Abu Dhabi and Dubai suffered their biggest single-day declines in years due to escalating tensions in the Middle East after several commercial ships were attacked off the coast of the UAE.
Finablr extended the closing of books for the London IPO to Tuesday from Monday due to the volatile market conditions, two sources familiar with the deal said on Monday.
The company, whose brands include UAE Exchange, Travelex Holdings and Xpress Money, has been seeking to raise $200 million from the sale of new stock ahead of a flotation on the London Stock Exchange (LSE).
RIGHT REGISTER
The listing of the shares is expected on Wednesday, said the sources, who declined to be identified because the information is not yet public.
“The closing of books is extended by a day because of market volatility. Finablr wanted to get the right register,” one of the sources told Reuters.
Finablr’s IPO plans were confirmed last month following the successful public flotation of Middle East payments firm Network International.
The Finablr network has a global reach spanning more than 170 countries and managed $114.5 billion in annual volumes for its clients as of December. Its biggest markets are India, Pakistan, Bangladesh and the Philippines.
The holding company Finablr will become the umbrella for UAE-based business tycoon and founder Bavaguthu Raghuram Shetty’s financial service brands.
Shetty, Finablr’s biggest shareholder, bought UK-based Travelex in January 2015 for 800 million pounds ($1.1 billion). He took another company he founded, NMC Health, public on the LSE in 2012. Like NMC Health, Finablr will have its headquarters in the UAE.
JPMorgan, Barclays and Goldman Sachs are global coordinators for the deal. Bookrunners include Bank of America Merrill Lynch, EFG Hermes and Numis . Evercore is acting as financial adviser.
UAE’s Finablr cuts IPO price in volatile markets
UAE’s Finablr cuts IPO price in volatile markets
- The listing of the shares is expected on Wednesday
- The company, whose brands include UAE Exchange, Travelex Holdings and Xpress Money, has been seeking to raise $200 million from the sale of new stock ahead of flotation on the London Stock Exchange
Reforms target sustained growth in Saudi real estate sector, says Al-Hogail
RIYADH: The Real Estate Future Forum opened its doors for its first day at the Four Seasons Riyadh, with prominent global and local figures coming together to engage with one of the Kingdom’s most prospering sectors.
With new regulations, laws, and investments underway, 2026 is expected to be a year of momentous progress for the real estate sector in the Kingdom.
The forum opened with a video highlighting the sector’s progress in the Kingdom, during which an emphasis was placed on the forum’s ability to create global reach, representation, as well as agreements worth a cumulative $50 billion
With the Kingdom now opening up real estate ownership to foreigners, this year’s Real Estate Future Forum is placing a great deal of importance on this new milestone and its desired outcomes and impact on the market.
Aside from this year’s forum’s unique discussions surrounding those developments, it will also be the first of its kind to launch the Real Estate Excellence Award and announce its finalist during the three-day summit.
Minister of Municipalities and Housing and Chairman of the Real Estate General Authority Majed Al-Hogail took to stage to address the diverse audience on the real estate market’s achievements thus far and its milestones to come.
Of those important milestones, he underscored “real estate balance” as a key pillar of the sector’s decisions to implement regulatory tools “with the aim of constant growth which can maintain the vitality of this sector.” He pointed to examples of those regulatory measures, such as the White Land Tax.
On 2025’s progress, the minister highlighted the jump in Saudi family home ownership, which went from 47 percent in 2016 to 66 percent in 2025, keeping the Kingdom’s Vision 2030 goal of 70 percent by the end of the decade on track.
He said the opening of the real estate market to foreigners is an indicator of the sector’s maturity under the leadership of Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman. He said his ministry plans to build over 300,000 housing units in Riyadh over the next three years.
Speaking to Arab News, Al-Hogail elaborated on these achievements, stating: “Today, demand, especially local demand, has grown significantly. The mortgage market has reached record levels, exceeding SR900 billion ($240 billion) in mortgage financing, we are now seeing SRC (Saudi Real Estate Refinance Co.) injecting both local and foreign liquidity on a large scale, reaching more than SR54 billion”
Al-Hogail described Makkah and Madinah as unique and special points in the Kingdom’s real estate market as he spoke of the sector’s attractiveness.
“Today, the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia has become, in international investment indices, one that takes a good share of the Middle East, and based on this, many real estate investment portfolios have begun to come in,” he said.
Al-Ahsa Gov. Prince Saud bin Talal bin Badr Al-Saud told Arab News the Kingdom’s ability to balance both heritage sites with real estate is one of its strengths.
He said: “Actually the real estate market supports the whole infrastructure … the whole ecosystem goes back together in the foundation of the real estate; if we have the right infrastructure we can leverage more on tourism plus we can leverage more on the quality of life … we’re looking at 2030, this is the vision … to have the right infrastructure the time for more investors to come in real estate, entertainment, plus tourism and culture.”
