KFC's Middle East And North Africa Franchisee Plans Dual Listing In UAE, Saudi

Americana Restaurants, the Middle East and North Africa franchisee of fast-food restaurants KFC and Pizza Hut, said it planned to launch an initial public offering (IPO), followed by a dual listing in the United Arab Emirates and Saudi Arabia.

Adeptio Investments, an investment vehicle jointly-held by Dubai businessman and founder of Emaar Properties Mohammed Alabbar and Saudi Arabia's Public Investment Fund, is offering about 2.53 billion existing ordinary shares, representing 30% of the company, Americana said in a regulatory filing on Wednesday.

The IPO would start from Nov. 14 to Nov. 21 for retail investors in the UAE and Saudi Arabia, and Nov. 14 to Nov. 22 for institutional investors in both the countries.

Following its public share-sale, it expects to list on the Abu Dhabi Securities Exchange and the Saudi Exchange on or around Dec. 6, it said.

Americana said it is targeting a partial dividend distribution of about 75% of net profit attributable to its parent firm for the second half of this fiscal year, to be paid in cash during the first six months of the next year.

From 2023 onwards, Americana plans to adopt an annual dividend policy, distributing a minimum of 50% of net profit attributable to its parent, with "the intention to further distribute any cash not specifically reserved for general corporate purposes, growth investment or M&A activity", it added.