Americana hires Rothschild to advise on possible Saudi or UAE IPO-sources

Logos of quick meals eating places KFC, Pizza Hut and Hardee’s are seen at Americana Plaza Mall in Cairo, Egypt, September 10, 2018. REUTERS/Amr Abdallah Dalsh/File Photograph

DUBAI, April 6 (Reuters) – The Center East and North Africa franchisee of fast-food eating places KFC and Pizza Hut has employed funding financial institution Rothschild & Co (ROTH.PA) to advise on a possible preliminary public providing (IPO), two sources informed Reuters.

Americana Group, which is contemplating a public share sale within the United Arab Emirates or Saudi Arabia, is predicted to ask banks to pitch for different high roles within the transaction in coming weeks, mentioned the sources, declining to be named because the matter isn’t public.

Americana is owned by Saudi Arabia’s Public Funding Fund and an funding consortium led by Dubai businessman Mohammed Alabbar, founding father of Dubai-listed Emaar Properties (EMAR.DU).

Americana and Alabbar didn’t instantly reply to a request for remark when contacted by Reuters on Wednesday. Rothschild declined to remark.

The shareholders may additionally contemplate a twin itemizing for the corporate, the sources mentioned.

Americana was acquired by Alabbar’s automobile Adeptio in 2016. Saudi Arabia’s Public Funding Fund purchased a 50% stake in Adeptio later that yr.

The corporate was valued at $3.5 billion in 2017 when it delisted from the Kuwait inventory trade.

The Abu Dhabi Securities Alternate and Saudi Arabia’s Tadawul bourse in 2019 signed an settlement to strengthen bilateral cooperation within the twin itemizing of securities within the Saudi and United Arab Emirates monetary markets.

Americana was based in Kuwait in 1964 and operates 1,800 eating places throughout the area, in line with data on its web site. It operates the franchises for KFC, Pizza Hut, Hardee’s and Krispy Creme, amongst many others.

Gulf issuers have raised $3.5 billion up to now this yr from IPOs, in line with information from Refinitiv, exceeding European flotations whilst world markets stay risky within the wake of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.

Gulf markets are extremely correlated to grease costs, the place Brent crude is buying and selling above $100 a barrel.

Saudi Arabia’s Tadawul fairness index is up 17% up to now this yr, whereas Abu Dhabi’s major benchmark is up greater than 18% and Dubai is up over 9%.

Reporting by Hadeel Al Sayegh; Modifying by David Holmes

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