Saudi Aramco plans for potential international listing
- Ben Geman, author of Axios Generate
Photo: FAYEZ NURELDINE/AFP via Getty Images
It's back! Or ... Maybe it's back. Or could eventually be back. Possibly.
The latest: Bloomberg reports that Saudi Aramco is "starting early preparations" for a potential listing in an international stock exchange at some point, which comes after its long-awaited debut on the Saudi exchange late last year.
- "The world’s largest publicly traded company is in discussions with Wall Street banks to draw up scenarios for a second listing overseas, according to the people, who asked not to be identified because the information is private," they report.
- But their piece and a Reuters report note that it's unlikely to occur this year.
The intrigue: Plans for an international listing have been a moving target for years, especially after the kingdom split the listing plan and focused on the domestic IPO, which finally happened in December and raised $29 billion.
Why it matters: It would bring a fresh infusion of capital into the kingdom, which is using the transformation of Aramco into a traded company to raise money to help with the country's economic diversification.
- Banks working on the deal wouldn't do too badly either.