Saudi Arabia’s Aramco Considers Selling $50 Billion in Shares
Saudi Arabia’s on-again, off-again plans to list more shares of Aramco, the world’s most valuable oil company, appear to be on again. The kingdom is considering selling a stake of as much as $50 billion, people familiar with the potential deal said, an amount that would be the largest offering in the history of capital markets. After monthslong consultations with advisers, the kingdom has decided to host any new Aramco offering on the Riyadh exchange to avoid legal risks associated with an international listing, according to Saudi officials and other people familiar with the plan.
A final decision hasn’t been made on the timing of the deal, but some of the people familiar with the transaction say the kingdom could offer the shares before the end of the year. Aramco has been sounding out potential investors, such as other multinational oil companies and sovereign-wealth funds, about participating in the deal, some of the people said. Even more than most deals, there is a possibility this one gets postponed or canceled altogether.
Riyadh has floated several different plans over the years aimed at raising funds via Aramco, some of which have ultimately faltered or been abandoned. Last year Aramco considered selling additional shares on the Riyadh stock exchange and a secondary listing, possibly in London, Singapore or other venues, but decided market conditions weren’t favorable. Aramco didn’t respond to requests for comment.
A share sale of $50 billion could prove difficult to pull off. The company set the previous record for the world’s largest initial public offering in 2019 when it raised $29.4 billion on the Tadawul, or the Saudi stock exchange. The Ant Group’s IPO of more than $34 billion surpassed that amount in
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