Saudi Tadawul teams up with Muscat bourse to enable dual listings

Partnership will offer new investment opportunities for exporters and investors

Tadawul is the Arab world’s largest exchange by market value. Reuters

Tadawul Saudi Arabia and Riyadh’s Securities Depository Centre Company (Edaa) have joined forces with the Muscat bourse and the sultanate’s Clearing and Depository Company, respectively, to allow companies to dual list in the Saudi financial market and its Omani counterpart.

Tadawul, the Arab world’s largest stock exchange by market value, has signed an agreement with the Muscat Stock Exchange (MSX) to create an organised market for stock trading.

The initiative will also allow sharing of information related to the securities listed on both markets in accordance with regulatory requirements, according to an official statement.

Edaa has signed a pact with the Muscat Clearing and Depository Company to enable dual listed companies to easily transfer shares between the kingdom and Oman.

The agreements aim to develop an advanced financial market and provide new investment opportunities at the local and international levels for exporters and investors.

“Today’s announcement represents another step towards connecting the financial markets in the Gulf region and facilitating access to a variety of investment opportunities,” said Khalid Al-Hussan, chairman of Saudi Tadawul and Edaa.

The agreements were signed on the sidelines of the Gulf Financial Markets Committee conference in Riyadh. They are an extension of an agreement signed by Tadawul and MSX last year to enhance trading and co-operation between the two financial markets.

“We are confident that the two agreements will contribute to expand the scope of co-operation between the two markets, which will contribute to providing a new and diversified set of opportunities for both investors and issuers,” said Haitham Al Salmi, chief executive of MSX and chairman of the board of directors of Muscat Clearing and Depository.

In September, MSX and the sultanate’s Clearing and Depository Company signed preliminary agreements with Abu Dhabi Securities Exchange that allow dual listing of Muscat-traded companies in Abu Dhabi.