Al-Mansoori: Expanding QSE product offering.
Gulf Warehousing Company’s (GWC) QR458mn rights issue yesterday opened for subscription and as much as QR1.13mn worth of rights were exchanged in 65 trades on the first day.
“The launch of rights trading went not only very smoothly from a technical standpoint, but it was also a resounding success,” a spokesman for the Qatar Stock Exchange (QSE) said.
The market saw a volume of 43,098 rights valued at QR1.13mn traded across 65 transactions.
The selling of rights, which is the first of its kind in Qatar’s capital market landscape, has come about after the QSE introduced new mechanism for selling rights issue, through which shareholders were given the option to sell within 10 days their rights, partially or fully, in the follow-on offers, but with certain conditions.
The 25% rights issue, through which GWC is offering 11.89mn shares at QR38.5 (including a premium of QR28.5 apiece), will be on tap for over 10 trading sessions and will end on October 29.
The price was determined based on a proper, scientific study approved by the regulators, using global and approved valuation modules. All shareholders as on October 12 will be eligible for the rights issue.
The rights issue will not only boost the company’s capital base, but support its expansion plans, including the development of the GWC Bu Sulba Logistics Park.
“We are delighted to expand the QSE product offering for investors with the trading of rights. This successful launch will comfort issuers that the trading of rights is a viable mechanism to increase their capital and we already look forward to the upcoming issues which are at various stages of shareholder or regulatory approval,” according to Rashid bin Ali al-Mansoori, chief executive of QSE.
The aim of new selling rights mechanism is aimed at providing protection and flexibility to those investors who do not have the intention to subscribe in the listed company’s capital increase, a bourse spokesman had said earlier.
However, the buying investors are not allowed to sell their purchased rights during the selling period.
