Lulu Holding to list 25% of its shares on ADX

Lulu Retail Holdings announced its intention to proceed with an initial public offering (IPO) and listing its ordinary shares on the Abu Dhabi Securities Exchange (ADX).

The company said in a statement today that a total of 2.582 billion ordinary shares, with a nominal value of $0.014 (equivalent to AED 0.051), representing 25 per cent of the total issued shares in the company’s capital, will be sold by the company’s sole shareholder, Lulu International Holding Limited.

The offering will be made available to individual investors in the UAE, including eligible employees of the Group, as part of the offering to individual subscribers in the UAE, to professional investors as part of the offering to qualified investors, and to eligible executives of the Group as part of the offering to senior executives.

The subscription period starts on  October 28 and ends on November 5.

The final offering price of the share will be determined after the completion of the price-building process, while investors participating in the offering of qualified individual and employee subscribers in the United Arab Emirates will subscribe to the shares according to the offering price.

The subscription process and acceptance of the shares are currently expected to be completed on or around November 14, subject to market conditions and following the receipt of relevant regulatory approvals in the UAE, including approval to accept the listing and trading of the shares on the Abu Dhabi Securities Exchange.

“We are pleased to announce the planned initial public offering of Lulu Retail on the Abu Dhabi Securities Exchange, the largest retailer covering the entire GCC region in terms of retail space, sales volume and number of stores,” said Founder, Chairman, and Non-Executive Director of Lulu Retail PJSC, Yusuff Ali Musallam Veetil Abdul Kader.

“Today, we operate over 240 stores across six GCC countries. The ambitious visions being implemented by the UAE, Saudi Arabia and other GCC countries are driving our growth, with strong national leaderships driving population growth, positive consumer trends and economic growth. We look forward to welcoming new shareholders to join us in Lulu’s success journey and our enthusiasm for the future,” he added.

The Group seeks to maintain a total dividend distribution ratio of 75 per cent of annual distributable profits after deducting taxes, paid semi-annually after the approval and publication of the results for the relevant periods, provided that it adheres to the applicable financial rules, internal and external circumstances, and in accordance with applicable legal obligations.

The Group aims to pay dividends for the six months ending December 31 in the first half of 2025.

The offering consists of the first tranche, which is a public offering to individual investors and other investors in the United Arab Emirates, including qualified employees of the Group; the second tranche, which is an offering to professional investors; and the third tranche, which is an offering to qualified senior executives of the Group.

In accordance with the terms of the underwriting agreement to be entered into between the Company, the Selling Shareholder and the Joint Bookrunners prior to the listing, the shares held by the Selling Shareholder shall be subject to a lock-up period commencing on the listing date and ending 180 calendar days after the listing date. The Company shall also be subject to a lock-up period as set out in the Prospectus.