EFG Hermes Completes Advisory Services for the IPO of Talabat and UAE’s Lulu Group

EFG Hermes, an EFG Holding company and the leading investment bank in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA), announced today that its investment banking division completed its advisory on the initial public offering (IPO) of Talabat Holding plc, the region’s leading online food and grocery delivery platform on the Dubai Financial Market (DFM). EFG Hermes acted as a Joint Bookrunner on the transaction, which involved the divestment of 20% of Delivery Hero’s stake, valued at approximately USD 2.0 billion, making it the largest UAE IPO of 2024 and the largest global tech IPO of the year to date. The IPO saw significant interest from international, regional, and local investors, resulting in double-digit oversubscription levels.

This comes shortly after the firm’s investment banking division successfully completed advisory on the initial public offering of LuLu Retail Holdings plc (LuLu Retail), the largest and fastest growing pan-GCC full-line retailer, on the Abu Dhabi Stock Exchange (ADX). EFG Hermes acted as a joint bookrunner on the transaction.

LuLu Retail raised AED 6.32 billion (USD 1.72 billion), equivalent to 30% of the company’s issued share capital. The landmark offering achieved aggregate demand of over AED 135 billion (c. USD 37 billion) from local, regional, and international investors, with the IPO oversubscribed by more than 25 times across all tranches (excluding cornerstone investors). The company’s shares started trading on 14 November, marking the 100th listing on the ADX.

Karim Meleka, Co-Head of Investment Banking at EFG Hermes, commented, “We are thrilled to have been part of Talabat’s and LuLu Retail’s monumental IPOs – representing major milestones for both companies and the UAE capital markets. The success of Talabat’s and LuLu Retail’s IPOs highlights the soaring investor interest in MENA’s technology and retail sectors. Our involvement reaffirms EFG Hermes as the trusted partner for high-profile regional transactions. We proudly support Talabat and LuLu Retail as they embark on this exciting new chapter.”

The IPOs of Talabat and LuLu Retail bring EFG Hermes’ total GCC IPO count to nine this year, including three IPOs on the Dubai Financial Market (DFM) and two on the Abu Dhabi Stock Exchange.