Parkin raises Dh1.6 bn; IPO oversubscribed 165 times

Parkin, the company set up by Dubai to oversee parking operations in the emirate, has raised Dh1.6 billion ($429 million) from its initial public offering, the first in the UAE this year, which received record investor demand of Dh259 billion ($71 billion).

It was oversubscribed by about 165 times across retail and institutional tranches of the deal, “the highest ever oversubscription level achieved on the DFM”, for a public float, the company said.

Earlier this week, it announced an increase in the number of shares for retail investors. It increased ordinary shares by 12 per cent from 74,970,000 to 89,964,000 in the retail category. The qualified investor tranche was reduced to 659,736,000 shares instead of 674,730,000 earlier, representing 88 per cent of the offer shares, compared to the 90 per cent previously announced.

Parkin set the price for its shares at Dh2.10, resulting in a market capitalisation at listing of Dh6.30 billion.

In total, the company raised Dh1.6 billion through the share sale.

Parkin will be the largest provider of paid parking facilities and services in Dubai and is the first company to launch an IPO in 2024 in the UAE. It currently operates approximately 197,000 paid parking spaces at strategic locations across the emirate.

The qualified investor tranche attracted more than Dh230 billion, implying an oversubscription of 166 times while the retail offering saw demand of Dh29 billion, an oversubscription of 153 times through almost 63,000 applications, a record for a DFM IPO.

“The IPO will enable us to build on and accelerate our success in providing seamless, sustainable, and innovative mobility solutions across the Emirate. We are proud to support Dubai’s privatization programme and the continued expansion of the Dubai Financial Market,” said Mohamed Al Ali, CEO of Parkin.

It is expected to commence trading on the Dubai bourse on March 21.

“Today represents a milestone moment for our business as we secured record-breaking investor demand for Parkin shares,” Mohamed Al Ali, chief executive of Parkin, said.

As a part of the emirate’s critical infrastructure, Parkin is central to Dubai’s growth plans and the IPO will enable the company to continue providing “seamless, sustainable and innovative mobility solutions”, Mr Al Ali said.

“We are proud to support Dubai’s privatisation programme and the continued expansion of the Dubai Financial Market … and reaffirm our commitment to delivering long-term value to all our stakeholders,” he said.