IPO Watch

Insatiable” was not the word to describe the behavior of actors in Middle Eastern primary markets in April 2010. While it appears credible that investors have been hungering after opportunities, the dearth of initial public offerings (IPOs) and secondary offerings in April 2010 was so complete that no actual primary market performance numbers were available from the Gulf or the Levant. The only market to report any securities market entrant and any new offering in April was Tunisia, where two insurance companies took listing steps. Tunis Re, the reinsurance company, carried out the subscription period for its IPO from April 5 to 16, offering 22 percent equity for $10 million. The results of subscription were not published at the time of this writing. Assurances SALIM started trading at the beginning of April following its $7 million subscription offer for 25 percent equity in March, which was over-subscribed almost 30 times.