GCC equity markets continued to attract capital and investor interest in Q2 2025, raising $2.4 billion across 12 listings, 4 main market IPOs and 8 listings on Saudi Arabia’s Nomu Parallel Market. Despite volatile equity markets early in the quarter, regional indices demonstrated resilience, reinforcing the region’s position as a hub for capital markets activity.
According to PwC Middle East’s latest IPO Watch report, GCC IPO proceeds in Q2 2025 were broadly in line with the same period last year ($2.6 billion in Q2 2024), despite a decline in the number of listings.
Three IPOs raise over $500 million
Notably, three IPOs raised over $500 million each, reflecting larger deal size and sustained investor appetite. Saudi Arabia remained the most active GCC market, accounting for 76 percent of IPO proceeds, supported by landmark listings like Flynas, the first airline IPO in the GCC in more than 15 years, and Specialized Medical Co., which raised $500 million in June.
The Nomu market also remained robust, with 8 listings raising $128 million, up from $81 million in Q2 2024.
In the UAE, the Dubai Residential REIT IPO marked the first REIT listing since 2014 and underlined renewed momentum in real estate and alternative assets. The DFM and ADX both rebounded strongly from early-quarter volatility, gaining 15 percent and 7 percent, respectively, with the DFM benefiting from positive performance across the real estate, financials and industrials sectors.
“The global market volatility at the start of Q2, driven by uncertainty over global trade tariffs, understandably prompted some companies to reassess their IPO plans. Despite slower IPO activity across the GCC, Tadawul and DFM witnessed landmark IPOs such as Flynas and Dubai Residential REIT. The outlook remains cautiously optimistic for the remainder of the year, subject to macroeconomic and geopolitical factors,” said Muhammad Hassan, capital markets leader, partner at PwC Middle East.
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GCC IPO market’s outlook remains promising
The long-term outlook for the GCC IPO market remains promising. A recovery of the equity markets in Q2, stabilization of volatility and a strong pipeline are contributing factors to this promising outlook. However, it will highly depend on the global macroeconomic and geopolitical stability.
“As we enter Q3, which itself is typically a quieter period for IPO activity, there is cautious optimism for the final quarter of 2025 and into 2026 as a diverse pipeline of issuers across the GCC gear up to go public, subject to favorable market conditions,” the report added.
Across the GCC, equity markets delivered mixed performance in Q2 2025. While early-quarter turbulence weighed on sentiment, recovery in the second half of the quarter helped restore investor confidence. Energy price fluctuations continue to influence indices, particularly in Saudi Arabia, where the TASI fell 6 percent due to almost a 20 percent drop in Brent crude.
Looking ahead, PwC highlights that while Q3 is typically a quieter period for IPOs, issuers across the GCC are gearing up for potential listings in late 2025 and early 2026 – the pipeline remains strong and diversified.
