At the Arabian Travel Market taking place in Dubai’s World Trade Centre, the CEO of Emirates said that if the airline decides to go public, “it will be a big success”.

Sheikh Ahmed bin Saeed Al Maktoum, President of the Dubai Civil Aviation Authority, CEO and founder of the Emirates Group, said on the sidelines of the event said that the listing of the airline is a decision of the government. “It’s the decision of the government, when they tell me – we’ll press the button and go public. If we go public, it will be a big success.”

Stay up to date with the latest news. Follow KT on WhatsApp Channels.

Sheikh Ahmed also said that increasing traffic in the country along with the rising number of hotel occupancies are positive indicators of Dubai’s performance. “We prove to the world that Dubai can always deliver,” he said.

He added that, “In Dubai, we always aim and just continue to our direction to achieve our target.”

Earlier, the CEO of Etihad Airways, Antonoaldo Neves, said that airlines going public with an IPO listing is not “uncommon” amid speculations of its possible listing following a stellar performance in 2023.

“Airline is a capital-intensive business,” Neves told reporters and noted the airlines can benefit if they gain “access to the capital markets and public markets through an IPO”.

In 2022, commenting on the IPO market in 2022, Maurice Gravier, chief investment officer, Emirates NBD Group said Dubai authorities were focused on improving market breadth and liquidity with a market maker fund and a Dh1 billion fund to encourage technology companies to list on the local bourse.

“There are plans to list 10 state controlled entities “including Dewa, Salik, Tecom, Empower, Dubai Duty Free, Jumeirah Group and potentially Emirates airlines,” Gravier wrote in his GIO 2022.

ALSO READ:

• Dubai: Spinneys kicks off IPO to raise Dh1.375 billion

• Dubai: Parkin to expand operations in malls, airports and new development areas