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Saudi Arabia is leading regional equity capital markets as the kingdom gears up for its first IPO since the start of the US/Israel–Iran conflict.
IT services provider Dar AlBalad for Business Solutions (DABS), which is floating 21 million shares or 30% of its share capital on Saudi Tadawul, will also serve as a benchmark to gauge investor confidence in a volatile geopolitical climate, say analysts.
“[An] IPO in current times shows the resilience of Saudi capital market, and investor confidence on the vision 2030 objective of increasing non-oil contribution,” Fahad Irfan, Senior Analyst at AlJazira Capital told Zawya. “This is also reflected in the fact that the Saudi market has performed much better than regional players despite facing the similar geopolitical issues.”
According to Irfan, DABS operates within a structurally expanding Saudi IT services ecosystem, which is underpinned by a Vision 2030–driven digital transformation.
Market dynamics
The DABS IPO comes at the tail end of Q1 in which MENA equity and equity-related issuance recorded its slowest annual start in the region since 2011, with transactions plunging 91% year-on-year, according to LSEG investment banking data.
A total of four IPOs were recorded during the first quarter of 2026, compared to 12 in the opening quarter of 2025, which raised a combined $296.6 million, less than any other first-quarter total since 2018.
The war in the Middle East caused a surge in oil prices, disrupted global trade and dampened market sentiment, said Karim Anani, EY global IPO leader, in an April 8 report, adding that heightened uncertainty prompted some global companies to delay listings, while others were forced to lower pricing expectations.
Yet, despite a regional slowdown, analysts noted that Tadawul remained relatively resilient during the conflict, allowing the broader GCC equity market index to post a smaller decline than others around the world. While most GCC indexes declined in March, the Tadawul All Share Index in Saudi Arabia rose 5%, compared to a 16.4% drop in Dubai, data revealed.
Saudi Arabia was a top IPO destination for big listings in 2025, and it is widely expected to maintain the lead this year as well, despite weeks of market uncertainty, S&P said.
Last week, bottled water brand Berain Company received its approval from Saudi Arabia’s Capital Markets Authority to float 66 million shares on the Saudi Exchange, representing 30% of its share capital. The company has until October to proceed with an IPO.
Three other Saudi companies that have already received CMA approvals include contractor Mutlaq Al Ghowairi Contracting Company, developer AlDyar AlArabiya Real Estate Development Company, and Facilities Management Company.
Looking ahead to Q2, banks remain optimistic about the regional IPO pipeline. Christopher Laing, Head of ECM at EFG Hermes’ Investment Banking told Zawya last week that investor appetite is expected to be strong once conditions stabilise, supported by the region’s solid economic fundamentals and a high‑quality pipeline of companies preparing to list.
(Reporting by Bindu Rai, editing by Seban Scaria)
