Shares in educational technology provider Alef Education, the first edtech company in the UAE and the first company to go public on the ADX in 2024, fell almost 18 per cent in their market debut on the Abu Dhabi stock exchange on Wednesday.
The stock opened flat and then fell to Dh1.11 per share compared with its initial public offering price of Dh1.35. The shares were trading down 10.4 per cent by around 0731 GMT and at the bottom of Abu Dhabi’s benchmark index. They closed at Dh1.18, down 12.59 per cent for the day.
The award-winning AI-powered learning solutions provider based began trading under the ticker symbol “AlefEdT”.
Abdulhamid Mohammed Saeed Alahmadi, chairman of Alef Education’s Board of Directors, and Geoffrey Alphonso, chief executive officer of Alef Education, rang the market opening bell the official listing ceremony in the presence of Ghannam Butti Almazrouei, ADX’s chairman and Abdulla Salem Alnuaimi, ADX’s chief executive officer. The ceremony was also attended by the Alef Education board, alongside senior executives of both Alef Education and the ADX.
Alef Education shares began trading following the successful public offering, which raised Dh1.89 billion through the sale of 1.4 billion shares, or 20 per cent of the company. At the time of listing, the Group’s market capitalisation was Dh9.45 billion.
The Group’s IPO met with robust demand from investors. The offering was 39 times oversubscribed, even after the retail tranche was increased from 8.0 per cent to 10 per cent.
“We are very pleased to be the first EdTech company to list in the UAE, which will help facilitate investor access to a promising new economy industry. The rapid success of Alef Education also reflects the environment the Abu Dhabi government has created to nurture tech startups and to support their capital markets journeys,” said Alahmadi.
Alphonso said the robust demand for shares of Alef Education is a vote of confidence in the Company’s strong fundamentals and attractive growth prospects. “The group’s robust financial position and capacity to raise capital position it well to take advantage of growth opportunities and continue maximising shareholder value. As an established EdTech player with a strong track record of success across its countries of operation, including the UAE, Indonesia, the US, and Morocco, Alef Education stands to benefit from further scale as a market leader.”
The company said it intends to pay a target minimum dividend amount to investors equivalent to an annualised dividend of Dh135 million relating to its performance for the financial years ending 31 December 2024 and 2025.
Since its inception in 2016, Alef Education has become a trusted partner for governments and private schools in the UAE and beyond, providing cutting-edge AI-driven solutions from kindergarten to Grade 12 that transform how students learn, the company said.
The diversified platform provides personalised learning experiences for all students so they learn at their own pace, anytime and anywhere. Artificial intelligence allows students to receive individualised instruction and enables them to choose how they prefer to learn.