Boursa Kuwait’s London Roadshow Met With Keen Interest

Press release

Published April 26th, 2018 - 06:04 GMT

Abdulrazzaq AlKhaled, Boursa Kuwait CEO

Boursa Kuwait’s first roadshow in London in collaboration with multinational financial services firm Goldman Sachs turned out to be an exceptional success. Eight companies listed at the Kuwaiti stock exchange, including the National Bank of Kuwait (NBK), Kuwait Finance House (KFH), Burgan Bank, Zain, Kuwait Projects Company (KIPCO), Mabanee, Mezzan Holding, and Human Soft participated in the tour.

The companies hosted more than 60 meetings with interested institutional investors, including endowment funds, commercial banks, mutual funds, hedge funds, pension funds and insurance companies. Taking place in Goldman Sachs’ London headquarters, the get-togethers provided the investors with the chance to learn more about the benefits of investing in Kuwaiti stocks as well as the individual companies, such as their respective performance, business strategy and outlook.

Pleased with the successful roadshow, Boursa Kuwait CEO Khaled Abdulrazzaq AlKhaled commented, “We came to London to raise awareness of the exceptional investment opportunities in the Kuwaiti stock market, and I am delighted to say that our roadshow has been met with keen interest by some of the most reputable institutional investors in this part of the world. The participation of eight of our locally listed companies was key to showcase specific investment options across a variety of sectors. Boursa Kuwait’s vision is to create a vibrant, mature and diversified market, and we have been making immense progress over the past two years. The positive feedback we have been receiving confirms we are on the right track, and this roadshow will be followed by many more in the years to come.”

This roadshow is the latest in a series of events that Boursa Kuwait has taken part in or organized with the aim of promoting the Kuwaiti market to international investors and raising the profile of its listed companies. In early March, Boursa Kuwait participated in the 14th Annual EFG Hermes One on One Conference in Dubai, where CEO Khaled Abdulrazzaq AlKhaled underlined the impact of sound operations and strong performance of capital markets on economic growth. Boursa Kuwait also recently participated in HSBC’s MENA Investor Forum, which brought together regulators, exchanges, over 25 of the largest companies from across the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) and US-based investors in New York City.

Boursa Kuwait is committed to developing a liquid, reliable and sound capital market providing issuers with efficient access to capital, and investors with diverse return opportunities, which will further strengthen Boursa Kuwait’s position as a leading regional exchange. In April, Boursa Kuwait initiated the second phase of its Market Development Plan, introducing a segmented market, new indices, circuit breakers as well as entirely new listing requirements, along with the Boursa Kuwait Rulebook.

Companies listed on Boursa Kuwait has also recently been included in the FTSE Russell secondary emerging market index, which is testament to the efficiency of the changes implemented.

Background Information

Boursa Kuwait

Boursa Kuwait was founded on April 21st, 2014 by the Capital Markets Authority Commissioners’ Council Resolution No. 37/2013 dated 20th November, 2013 and the Capital Markets Authority Law No. 7/2010. In addition to being primarily responsible for regulating all aspects of the Kuwaiti capital market, the Capital Markets Authority also has full ownership of Boursa Kuwait, which manages the exchange operations. Boursa Kuwait is responsible for introducing new trading rules, risk management practices, price discovery mechanisms and new technology to ensure that Boursa Kuwait is as robust and secure as possible. The establishment of Boursa Kuwait marked the first step in privatizing the Kuwaiti Stock Exchange, which was founded in 1983.