Convenience Store Retailer Trolley Plans Rare IPO in #Kuwait - Bloomberg

Convenience Store Retailer Trolley Plans Rare IPO in Kuwait - Bloomberg

Kuwaiti convenience store Trolley is planning an initial public offering, according to people familiar with the matter, a rare transaction in one of the Gulf’s quietest markets for new share sales.

EFG Hermes and National Investments Co. are advising on the transaction, which could take place as early as this year, according to the people, who asked not to be named discussing information that isn’t public. No final decisions have been made on the listing, and details such as the size and exact timing have yet to be finalized, the people said.

Representatives for Trolley and NIC did not respond to requests for comment, while representatives for EFG declined to comment.

While Middle Eastern bourses like Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates have seen a flurry of listings over the past four years, Kuwait has largely stayed on the sidelines. Only two companies have gone public in the Gulf state in that time - Beyout Investment Group Holding raised about $146 million in 2024, while Ali Alghanim Sons Automotive drew $322 million in 2022.

Still, Trolley’s planned listing comes as Kuwait’s bourse outperforms regional peers – its main share index is up more than 14% this year, outpacing Dubai’s 8.9% gain. Both gauges briefly dipped after the conflict between Israel and Iran flared up this month, but have since erased those losses and are nearing new highs as a truce appears to hold.

Trolley was founded in 2010 and has 170 stores in Kuwait, according to its website.

Investors have welcomed moves by ruler Sheikh Mishaal Al-Ahmed Al-Sabah to cut through political gridlock, including the suspension of parliament last year. That step cleared the path for long-awaited economic and fiscal reforms, which are yet to materialize.

The OPEC-member state in March approved a new debt law set to re-open international bond markets for Kuwait for the first time since 2017.

The country has already started the process of sending a request for proposal to banks to raise about $6 billion from international debt markets, Bloomberg News reported earlier this week.

The Gulf nation, home to a sovereign wealth fund valued at over $1 trillion, has long been hampered by a unique political structure—combining an elected parliament with a government appointed by the ruling family —that often resulted in legislative deadlock. That gridlock delayed key bills such as the public debt law, forcing the government to rely on the General Reserve Fund to cover budget deficits.