UAE-based property investment firm Awtad has celebrated the listing of company’s shares on Second Market of Dubai Financial Market (DFM) where investors can trade on private firms’ shares within a regulated and advanced environment.

The company boasts a capital of Dh150 million ($41 million) distributed between 1.5 million shares with a nominal value of Dh100 per share.

Majid Abdullah Alsari, the chairman of Awtad rang the market bell on Thursday (December 21) to celebrate the listing in the presence of Hassan Al Serkal, the chief operating officer and head of operations division of DFM as well as senior representatives from both sides.

Welcoming the listing, Essa Kazim, the chairman of DFM said the Second Market represents significant value for businesses and investors alike as it enables investors to trade on private companies’ shares within a regulated and advanced environment and through the electronic trading system.

"The listing also enables private companies that play an integral role in the economic activity, to avail various benefits of being a listed company," he noted.

"The second market has a huge potential to expand considering the big number of private joint stock companies in the country of approximately 150 companies and DFM encourages them to be part of its comprehensive platform," ramarked Kazim.

The listing on the second market provides these companies with numerous benefits including; links with local and international investors, the streamlined access to funds necessary for expansion as well as enhancing its competitiveness through the implementation of best practices of transparency, corporate governance and investor relations, preparing the company for a new era of growth," he added.

On the listing, Alsari said: "We are proud to have Awtad listed on the Second Market."

"We give high regard to SCA and DFM and we are confident that this will provide us with a tremendous opportunity to grow our investments, expand our business activities, increase our investor base and contribute to enhancing the concept of transparency and disclosure by applying corporate governance rules to the benefit of all parties," he added.-TradeArabia News Service