Abu Dhabi's Multiply Group included in FTSE Global Equity Index Series

In March, the company also became part of the FTSE ADX 15 index, the benchmark for the biggest and most liquid stocks on the ADX

Multiply Group chief executive Samia Abuazza says joining the FTSE Global Equity Index Series is an important milestone for the company. Photo: Multiply Group

Multiply Group, an Abu Dhabi technology-focused investment holding company, has been added to the FTSE Global Equity Index Series (FTSE GEIS) Mid Cap Index.

The inclusion announced by FTSE Russell in its June quarterly review will be effective from June 20, the company said on Monday.

Inclusion into the FTSE Global Equity Index indicates a company's strength and could push Multiply's stock price higher.

The company had a market value of about Dh21.7 billion ($5.9bn) on Monday morning. Its share price is up about 5 per cent since the start of this year and is currently trading at about Dh1.94.

“Joining the FTSE Global Equity Index Series within six months from the listing on the ADX marks an important milestone for us,” said Samia Bouazza, chief executive and managing director at Multiply Group.

“The inclusion highlights our business performance and positive engagement with the investor community. It will further boost our visibility, add to shareholder diversity and enhance [the] Abu Dhabi Securities Exchange’s position as one of the top markets globally.”

FTSE GEIS is a part of FTSE Russell and provides benchmarking, analytics and data solutions to investors globally.

The FTSE GEIS is a global equity index framework that includes more than 16,000 large, mid, small and micro-cap securities across 48 developed and emerging markets. It has a wide range of indexes available for investors, allowing them to focus on specific markets and market segments.

In March, Multiply Group was added to the newly designed FTSE ADX 15 index. The FADX 15 is a sub-index of the main benchmark FTSE ADX General Index and represents the 15 largest and most liquid companies trading on the Abu Dhabi bourse.

Developed by the ADX, the Arab world's second-largest stock market by market value, and FTSE Russell, the FADX 15 aims to support the bourse’s recently launched derivatives market and the creation of exchange traded funds and other index-tracking investment vehicles.

The addition of Multiply Group, which listed on the ADX in December, to the FADX 15 and the FTSE GEIS Mid Cap Index comes at a time when the company is continuing its investment spree.

In the past 12 months, the company invested Dh367 million as a cornerstone investor in the listing of the Dubai Water and Electricity Authority.

It also invested Dh183.7m in the initial public offering of Borouge, the biggest listing on the ADX, as an anchor investor.

Joining the FTSE Global Equity Index Series within six months from the listing on the ADX marks an important milestone for us

Samia Bouazza,
chief executive and managing director of the Multiply Group

It has also taken stake in digital and e-commerce platforms with substantial earning potential, including US vehicle-focused digital media platform Firefly, global visual content company Getty Images and Rihanna's direct-to-consumer e-commerce fashion company Savage X Fenty.

The company’s other major investments include stakes in PAL Cooling, Emirates Driving Company and Viola Communications.

Multiply Group, a subsidiary of Abu Dhabi-based International Holding Company, swung to profit in the first quarter of the year as revenue surged.

Net profit, attributable to the owners of the company, reached Dh290.5m in the three months to the end of March, compared with a loss of Dh889,000 in the same period last year, the company said in a bourse filing in April.

Revenue for the reporting period reached Dh241.2m, about Dh237.6m more than in the same period in 2021.