2022 a turning point in the Saudi capital market

I received an invitation from my dear brother Khalid Al-Hussan, CEO of Saudi Tadawul Group, to attend this year’s edition of the Saudi Capital Market Forum, which took place in Riyadh last week. I must say, compared to its previous editions, it was unique in terms of content, speakers, topical diversity and the number of participants.

The forum brought together a wide spectrum of participants, including government officials, opinion leaders, issuers and investors to explore key issues facing the industry and the evolution of global capital markets, as well as to present the efforts of Saudi companies in meeting global environmental, social and governance standards. Furthermore, digital innovations topics were discussed, especially fintech in supporting small and medium-sized enterprises and open banking. The interview conducted by Matthew Martin, Bloomberg’s bureau chief for Saudi Arabia, with Mohammed El-Kuwaiz, chairman of the Capital Market Authority board, was an excellent kickoff to the forum, summarizing the record year of Saudi capital market achievements during 2022.

In the post-COVID-19 era, family businesses have been looking for all types of funding, including using the public listing channel. That explains the record number of initial public offerings that took place in 2022. Over the past two years, we at BMG have experienced the highest number of visits by family businesses exploring the public listing route, mainly on the Nomu market. Since the start of this year, 22 companies have been approved for listing on the Tadawul and Nomu markets, while there are about 77 companies’ files under review, including one of our clients, which is in the plastic industrial business.

The achievements of last year deserved the spectacular Saudi Capital Market Forum

The ESG topic and its relevance to Shariah-compliant guidelines were covered by two leading Shariah-compliant firms: SEDCO Capital and Alkhabeer Capital. That session was noticeably well presented and explained by the respective CEOs of these two firms.

Another topic that was covered extensively was dual listings between the Saudi stock exchange and other exchanges in the region and internationally, including the Singapore Exchange, which signed a memorandum of understanding during the forum. It is worth mentioning that Americana Restaurants was the first dual listing between Riyadh and Abu Dhabi.

The finale was showbiz, to say the least. The awards ceremony was performed in a Hollywood fashion. As 2022 was a record year, with 49 public offerings between the Tadawul All Share Index and Nomu, with funds amounting to more than $10 billion in value of offerings, the awards were expanded to new areas of specialization and businesses. Also, the ceremony included both financial institutions and issuers in collaboration with the CFA Society Saudi Arabia and the Middle East Investor Relations Association. Special congratulations to SNB Capital, which managed to sweep four awards for the first time.

For someone who has been organizing and attending financial conferences and forums over many years, including the BMG Economic Forum every summer at the London Stock Exchange, I must say the achievements of 2022, which in my opinion were a turning point in the history of the Saudi capital market, deserved this spectacular forum.

Basil M.K. Al-Ghalayini is the chairman and CEO of BMG Financial Group.