Abu Dhabi Securities Exchange hits historic milestone

The Abu Dhabi Securities Exchange (ADX) is marking a milestone achievement after recording AED 2 trillion in market capitalisation.

The ADX hit the historic milestone on Monday, June 6, making it the second largest stock market in the Middle East in just two decades.

The 25 per cent year-to-date spike in the exchange’s market capitalisation was bolstered by a spate of IPOs and listings over the past year.

These included Abu Dhabi Ports, Fertiglobe, ADNOC Drilling, Alpha Dhabi and Multiply Group.

Most recently, petrochemicals company Borouge raised $2 billion in an IPO and listed last week, while ADQ and Chimera Capital launched the first ADX-listed Special Purpose Acquisition Company (SPAC).

.@ADX_AE is marking a milestone achievement after recording AED2 trillion in market capitalisation, doubling in value following a dedicated strategy to enhance trading and liquidity through listing incentives, trading fees reductions and innovative products. pic.twitter.com/ihT06z5Pyz

— مكتب أبوظبي الإعلامي (@ADMediaOffice) June 7, 2022

The latest accomplishment has been supported by ‘ADX One,’ the exchange’s strategy to enhance liquidity through listing incentives, trading fees reductions and rolling out innovative products and services.

The exchange’s benchmark index, the FTSE ADX General Index, has gained 16 per cent this year, making it one of the best performing stock markets worldwide.

Since the launch of ‘ADX One’ at the beginning of 2021, the exchange has developed several new initiatives to boost market liquidity, including the introduction of a derivatives market in the fourth quarter of 2021.

This was followed by an agreement with FTSE Russell to develop co-branded indices, including a tradable version of the FTSE FADX 15 Index that will be launched in 2022.

During the first quarter of 2022, the exchange recorded an 87 per cent year-on-year increase in the value of total trades made in the first quarter of 2022.

Traded values (buy + sell) on the exchange rose to AED 202 billion in Q1 2022 from AED 108 billion in Q1 2021.

Meanwhile, the market value of shares owned by foreign investors in Q1 2022 jumped 163 per cent to AED 131 billion from AED 50 billion in Q1 2021.