The key to publicly listing a company is having a long-term vision and strategy which smooths out short-term volatility and delivers value to shareholders over the longer term. For businesses seeking to launch an IPO, here is a five-point checklist to help you achieve that goal as you embark on the path to becoming a listed company:
1. Plan ahead
The IPO process will be one of the biggest changes to any business, and it needs to be very carefully planned. This will include planning for the establishment of appropriate internal processes and procedures, particularly on auditing of the accounts, through to the operating structure of the business. Before approaching the relevant regulatory authority for your plans to IPO, your company needs to be as compliant as possible as a prospective public company.
2. Controlled disclosure of information
Before a formal announcement is made to communicate the company’s intention to list, ensure communications are controlled, well-timed and adhere to market regulations. Through media and presentation training, spokespeople need to be briefed and coached on what they can and cannot say from the beginning of the IPO process.
3. Establish a “normal and customary” flow of communications
As a private entity, it is never too early to open communication channels with key participants in your chosen capital market and to begin building a strong public image. This would include communicating both the organisational changes you have made to the business in order for it to grow, and the progress the business is making towards its objectives. Once advisers are appointed and the IPO application is filed with the relevant capital market authorities, your external communications will be highly regulated and legally binding not only to the company but also, in some cases, with directors of the company being personally liable over what is stated publicly. Ideally, regular PR outreach should start at least one year before the filing date.
4. Think, act and perform like a public company
A robust public image cannot be achieved overnight. Implementation of the communications campaign should effectively build your profile with investors and with those who will influence the investment decision such as financial media, industry publications and financial analysts. If you are communicating in a language that investors already understand, this will speed up the process of educating prospective investors on your company’s investment case. Public companies need to adhere to good governance procedures, with the correct balance of executives and non-executives on the board, transparent financials and a clearly communicated growth strategy. The more protection provided to the investors, the more attractive the investment proposition will be and the higher the subsequent rating.
5. Profile the expertise of the management team
The investment community wants to know whether the management team has the right experience and capabilities to take the company to its next stage of growth. This will show investors that the company is well governed and likely to demonstrate sustainable returns and the building of shareholder value. The corporate communications campaign should demonstrate the strength in depth of the business, as well as best practices on governance to ensure that shareholders are represented appropriately on the board.
Nowhere is this more relevant than in the case of a greenfield IPO, which is the listing of a start-up with no assets or operations. For example, the founders of Marka are some of the best-known business figures in the UAE, which led to a high-profile listing on the Dubai Financial Market and an IPO that was 36 times oversubscribed. Dubai Parks and Resorts is another example of high-profile greenfield IPOs that listed last year and was oversubscribed multiple times.
A strong public profile and open communication will help the market better understand and subsequently build confidence in senior management’s ability to deliver future growth. The more investors trust you, the more likely they are to buy and hold your shares – a classic communication principle about the importance of building trust which also applies to investment decisions.
Bobby Morse, based in London, is a co-founder at H+K Financial. Anca Cighi, based in Dubai, is senior consultant at H+K Financial.
business@thenational.ae
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F1 The Movie
Starring: Brad Pitt, Damson Idris, Kerry Condon, Javier Bardem
Director: Joseph Kosinski
Rating: 4/5
Gothia Cup 2025
4,872 matches
1,942 teams
116 pitches
76 nations
26 UAE teams
15 Lebanese teams
2 Kuwaiti teams
Killing of Qassem Suleimani
The specs
Price, base / as tested Dh1,100,000 (est)
Engine 5.2-litre V10
Gearbox seven-speed dual clutch
Power 630bhp @ 8,000rpm
Torque 600Nm @ 6,500rpm
Fuel economy, combined 15.7L / 100km (est)
WOMAN AND CHILD
Director: Saeed Roustaee
Starring: Parinaz Izadyar, Payman Maadi
Rating: 4/5
Company%20profile
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If you go
The flights
Emirates (www.emirates.com) and Etihad (www.etihad.com) both fly direct to Bengaluru, with return fares from Dh 1240. From Bengaluru airport, Coorg is a five-hour drive by car.
The hotels
The Tamara (www.thetamara.com) is located inside a working coffee plantation and offers individual villas with sprawling views of the hills (tariff from Dh1,300, including taxes and breakfast).
When to go
Coorg is an all-year destination, with the peak season for travel extending from the cooler months between October and March.
The specs: 2018 Nissan 370Z Nismo
The specs: 2018 Nissan 370Z Nismo
Price, base / as tested: Dh182,178
Engine: 3.7-litre V6
Power: 350hp @ 7,400rpm
Torque: 374Nm @ 5,200rpm
Transmission: Seven-speed automatic
Fuel consumption, combined: 10.5L / 100km
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
Conflict, drought, famine
Estimates of the number of deaths caused by the famine range from 400,000 to 1 million, according to a document prepared for the UK House of Lords in 2024.
It has been claimed that the policies of the Ethiopian government, which took control after deposing Emperor Haile Selassie in a military-led revolution in 1974, contributed to the scale of the famine.
Dr Miriam Bradley, senior lecturer in humanitarian studies at the University of Manchester, has argued that, by the early 1980s, “several government policies combined to cause, rather than prevent, a famine which lasted from 1983 to 1985. Mengistu’s government imposed Stalinist-model agricultural policies involving forced collectivisation and villagisation [relocation of communities into planned villages].
The West became aware of the catastrophe through a series of BBC News reports by journalist Michael Buerk in October 1984 describing a “biblical famine” and containing graphic images of thousands of people, including children, facing starvation.
Band Aid
Bob Geldof, singer with the Irish rock group The Boomtown Rats, formed Band Aid in response to the horrific images shown in the news broadcasts.
With Midge Ure of the band Ultravox, he wrote the hit charity single Do They Know it’s Christmas in December 1984, featuring a string of high-profile musicians.
Following the single’s success, the idea to stage a rock concert evolved.
Live Aid was a series of simultaneous concerts that took place at Wembley Stadium in London, John F Kennedy Stadium in Philadelphia, the US, and at various other venues across the world.
The combined event was broadcast to an estimated worldwide audience of 1.5 billion.
In numbers
Number of Chinese tourists coming to UAE in 2017 was... 1.3m
Alibaba’s new ‘Tech Town’ in Dubai is worth... $600m
China’s investment in the MIddle East in 2016 was... $29.5bn
The world’s most valuable start-up in 2018, TikTok, is valued at... $75bn
Boost to the UAE economy of 5G connectivity will be... $269bn
Game Changer
Director: Shankar
Stars: Ram Charan, Kiara Advani, Anjali, S J Suryah, Jayaram
Rating: 2/5
If you go
The Flights
Emirates and Etihad fly direct to Johannesburg from Dubai and Abu Dhabi respectively. Economy return tickets cost from Dh2,650, including taxes.
The trip
Worldwide Motorhoming Holidays (worldwidemotorhomingholidays.co.uk) operates fly-drive motorhome holidays in eight destinations, including South Africa. Its 14-day Kruger and the Battlefields itinerary starts from Dh17,500, including campgrounds, excursions, unit hire and flights. Bobo Campers has a range of RVs for hire, including the 4-berth Discoverer 4 from Dh600 per day.
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets