Ajman Bank enters Dubai stock market with a bang

Dubai: Retail buying drove shares of Ajman Bank to rise in the company's debut trading on Sunday, closing at Dh3.96, almost quadruple of the initial public offering price of Dh1.

Ajman Bank, in which the Government of Ajman holds 25 per cent, had closed at Dh42 billion in the IPO in February and was oversubscribed more than 77 times.

"There's always a hype when there is a new listing and the stock was dominated by the retail investors and they were the ones who were creating the liquidity today," Amro Diab, head of GCC institutional sales at EFG-Hermes.

On the back of strong demand for Ajman Bank shares, the Dubai Financial Market turned in an impressive turnover value of Dh2.01 billion closing 0.73 per cent up at 5,598.96. The bank's trading volume of 259.98 million shares was worth Dh1.04 billion.

"It will add more options for investors to invest in," said Tariq Qaqish, fund manager, Almal capital.

"With the Ajman economy growing and changing, it will also add value to the economy of the emirate."