The banks to advise the Saudi Stock Exchange on its initial public offering (IPO) will be selected in the coming days, the bourse's CEO said on Tuesday, suggesting that it could opt for both local and international banks to provide broader expertise.

Reuters reported in March that the exchange known as Tadawul had asked banks to pitch for the advisory mandate on the IPO of the Gulf region's biggest bourse.

"We need the local experience, meaning those that are familiar with the process and with the regulator, as well as the process of taking an exchange public," Khalid Al Hussan told Reuters on the sidelines of a finance event.

"Few IPOs in the world have been concluded to take an exchange public, so we want to ensure the team engaged on the ground to take Tadawul public is what is required."

Tadawul has said the IPO is expected to take place in 2018.-Reuters