The GCC is expected to be the home to over 150 new IPOs during the upcoming two years, according to industry reports. Morgan Stanley predicts that Saudi Arabia alone is set to launch at least 110 initial public offerings over the next two years. In parallel, the number of IPOs in the Levant and North Africa region is expected to increase threefold in the same period. In 2007 the GCC’s compounded value of funds raised through IPOs was $10.5 billion, up by 40% when compared to 2006. The action was split mostly between the UAE, which came in first place raising $5.1 billion, and Saudi Arabia, where $4.81 billion have been raised. Qatar followed as distant third with $389 million, then Oman with $156 million and Bahrain with $69 million. As such, market observers say that Gulf and foreign investors alike continue to see the region’s IPOs market as a
