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Abu Dhabi-based edtech firm Alef Education raised AED 1.89 bn from its IPO after pricing it at the top of the initial price range, with over AED 74 bn in orders from local, regional and international investors at the close of the offering period, according to a statement (pdf). The order book was 39x oversubscribed.
Final share price: The edtech company set its final IPO price at the top of its initial price range at AED 1.35 per share. This gives the company a market cap of AED 9.45 bn and proceeds worth AED 1.89 bn.
Shares will start trading on the ADX on Thursday, 12 June, under the ticker AlefEdT, the statement reads.
REMEMBER- Alef’s shareholders, Tech Nova Investment and Kryptonite Investments, are offering up to a 20% stake (1.4 bn shares) in an IPO on the ADX. This marks Abu Dhabi’s first IPO of the year and the UAE’s third, following the successful IPOs of Parkin, which raised AED 1.57 bn, and Spinneys, which raised AED 1.38 bn.
What’s next for the company? “Looking ahead, we have ambitious growth plans to expand further into our target markets, broaden our product offering and continue delivering value to our core UAE market,” CEO Geoffrey Alphonso said.
The annualized dividend yield to shareholders will be a minimum of 7.1%, the company said. Alef had pledged to pay shareholders a minimum dividend payout ratio of 90% of net income for both 2024 and 2025, and is targeting distributing no less than AED 135 mn annually for both years, according to the company’s intention to float (pdf). Dividends will be paid semi-annually, with payouts for the first-half results distributed to shareholders in 4Q of that year, and dividends for the second half paid in 2Q of the following calendar year.
ADVISORS- FAB and EFG Hermes are acting as joint lead managers and bookrunners. FAB is also the listing advisor and lead receiving bank of the IPO, with Abu Dhabi Islamic Bank, Abu Dhabi Commercial Bank, and Al Maryah Community Bank acting as receiving banks.
