Delivery Hero’s Middle East subsidiary Talabat raised $2 billion in an IPO on December 10. Talabat sold more than 4.65 billion shares at AED1.60 ($0.44) per share. The sale of a 20% stake represents a market capitalization of approximately $10 billion.
Berlin-based Delivery Hero has decided to increase the size of its offering from 15% to 20%, citing robust demand.
Tomaso Rodriguez, CEO of Talabat, a regional food ordering and convenience retail marketplace, confirmed that the offering attracted double-digit oversubscription. “It is clear that Talabat’s offering presented international and local investors with a unique opportunity to gain exposure to a leading player in the MENA region’s dynamic and technology-driven on-demand delivery market.” , he declared.
Talabat’s IPO is the UAE’s largest listing for 2024. Launched in Kuwait in 2004, the company is active in five of the six Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) countries, as well as Egypt, in Iraq and Jordan. It does not operate in Saudi Arabia. Talabat, which has six million active customers, hopes proceeds from the offering will pay down Delivery Hero’s debt, analysts say.
But Talabat’s December debut on the Dubai Financial Market was met with a muted reaction, with shares losing 7.5% on the first day of trading. This was due to its aggressive pricing, said George Pavel, general manager of trading app Naga Middle East. “The company and its underwriters have priced the IPO at AED 1.60, the high end of the marketed range, with a price-to-earnings ratio of 28 times, significantly higher than the average of nine times. “general index of the Dubai financial market.”
This leaves no room for upward movement and has likely led investors to question the valuation premium, he added.
IPOs in the GCC countries raised nearly $12 billion in 2024. Investors have been attracted to the GCC capital markets amid a gloomy outlook for IPOs in the US and US markets. Europeans.