Al Ansari Financial Services Company is preparing to sell 750 million of its shares, in the first initial public offering witnessed by the Dubai Financial Market this year.

The offering, which represents 10% of the company's shares, will start next week, while trading in shares may start on April 6, according to what the company announced Thursday.

The company has appointed Abu Dhabi Commercial Bank and EFG Hermes as joint global coordinators for the offering.

The selling shareholder will receive the net proceeds of the offering, and the company will not receive any of the proceeds of the offering. All expenses, including sale coins and any discretionary fees, will be borne by the Selling Shareholder.

Dividend

The company achieved profits of 595 million dirhams last year, with a growth rate of 21%. It aims to distribute profits of up to 600 million dirhams as a minimum for the proceeds of 2023, and after that, it is expected to distribute profits at a rate of no less than 70% of the net profits achieved.

A presentation of the company, which it presented to investors in early March, prior to the offering, indicated that it had withdrawn 300 million dirhams from its balances in Abu Dhabi Commercial Bank to pay dividends before the initial public offering. In addition to distributing 300 million dirhams last year, the company paid 1.076 billion dirhams as exceptional dividends.

Al-Ansari expects the EBITDA margin to decline slightly during the current year compared to last year, provided that next year it will be much higher than the 2022 level, according to the presentation.

The company had distributed profits amounting to 312 million dirhams and 276 million dirhams in 2021 and 2020, respectively.

target expansions

The company aims to enter other markets in the Gulf region which accounted for approximately 25.4% of worldwide remittance flows in 2021.

The Group is in the process of acquiring Al Ansari Exchange Company - Kuwait (an entity owned by some of the existing shareholders of the selling shareholder), which in turn acquired Oman Exchange Company, a foreign exchange company in Kuwait. It intends to apply for regulatory approvals to complete the acquisition, according to the prospectus.

The company said that the completion of the acquisition would create the fourth largest company in the Kuwait market with a market share of 7.7% in terms of the number of physical branches, giving the group a strong presence in the sixth largest market for external personal transfers in the world.

In addition, the group intends to increase its market share outside the UAE through its wholly owned subsidiary by leveraging its network of correspondent banks and partners.

Al Ansari is establishing Al Ansari Digital Pay, which is seeking permission from the Central Bank of the UAE to provide digital wallet services to be able to keep customers' money and enable them to make digital transfers and pay bills. The company expects to launch the company in the first half of this year.

Additional information about the offering:

  • The institutional subscription period begins on March 16th and ends on the 24th of the same month, and 95% of the offering shares are allocated to them.
  • The company reserved 37.5 million shares of institutional shares for the Emirates Investment Authority.
  • The subscription period for individuals starts on March 16th and ends on March 23rd, and 5% of the offering shares are allocated to them.
  • The start of trading shares in the Dubai market, April 6.
  • It is possible for the Company to adjust the offering size before the end of the global offering price determination period.

Al Ansari Exchange Company was established nearly 60 years ago and currently operates more than 230 branches in the UAE, making it one of the largest exchange companies in the country. In addition to currency exchange services, it also provides money transfer services, pays the salaries of local workers, and provides savings programs, according to its website.