The First Saudi IPO of 2026 Just Landed — War and All

Saleh Abdulaziz Al Rashed & Sons Co. became the first company to list on the Saudi Exchange in 2026, and the market didn't flinch.

Shares jumped more than 14% in the debut session on March 11, according to AGBI. The Riyadh-based quarrying and construction materials firm raised $67 million — small by Saudi IPO standards, but the retail tranche was 161% oversubscribed. Investors wanted in.

The Elephant in the Room: Iran

Saudi Arabia is dealing with active missile and drone attacks tied to the U.S.-Israel conflict with Iran. Shipping is disrupted. Air travel is rattled. Regional markets are nervous.

And yet the Tadawul All-Shares Index — Saudi Arabia's main market benchmark — is actually up 2% since the conflict began, outperforming several regional peers, according to AGBI.

Shahrukh Saleem, a portfolio analyst at asset manager Mashreq Capital, said bluntly: "It looks like IPOs will be a bit delayed."

Nishit Lakhotia, group chief investment officer for equities at SICO Bank, was more direct: "While it is not prudent to do an IPO until this current conflict ends or subsides, we still think there will be an appetite for good quality stocks at reasonable volumes."

In other words, the market is open for business, but institutional investors are taking a wait-and-see approach.

What the Company Said

CEO Saud Al Rashed told AGBI via email that the decision to list "was driven by operational, financial and institutional readiness, not by short-term market timing." He declined to comment on whether a prolonged conflict is a concern for Saudi financial markets.

The decline to comment speaks volumes. But his point about domestic demand holds weight — Saudi Arabia's Vision 2030 infrastructure push is still churning, and quarry materials aren't exactly a discretionary luxury. The country is building, war or not.

Context: Saudi IPOs Had a Rough 2025

The Saudi Exchange fell 13% in 2025. Thirteen companies listed on the main market last year, raising an average of $300 million — but valuations were dropping toward the end of the year, according to AGBI.

This $67 million raise matches the smallest listing of 2025, which was car rental company Cherry Trading in December. That's the baseline they're working from.

Analysts broadly expect fewer IPOs in 2026 with smaller valuations.

The Pipeline Isn't Dead

Four Saudi companies currently hold permission from the Capital Markets Authority to launch IPOs: restaurant chain Alromansiah Company and at least three others in IT and related sectors, according to AGBI. Whether those listings happen soon depends heavily on how the Iran conflict develops.

Bloomberg reported that the owners of a Saudi contractor are targeting up to $800 million in a Riyadh IPO. That would be a major deal — more than ten times the size of the Al Rashed listing. Details remain limited, but the figure alone suggests that institutional appetite for Saudi listings hasn't disappeared. Big money is still looking for an on-ramp.

Arabian Business and Bloomberg also reported that multiple Saudi companies are advancing IPO plans specifically to help revive the flagging local exchange.

What Mainstream Coverage Is Missing

Most financial media frames this as a simple "war vs. markets" tension.

The real story is more specific: Saudi Arabia's domestic economy is structurally insulated from some of the conflict's worst effects because the Vision 2030 spending machine keeps running regardless of regional geopolitics. Construction, infrastructure, materials — that's government-mandated demand. It doesn't stop because of headlines.

The 161% oversubscription on the retail tranche also matters. That's retail investors in Saudi Arabia actively chasing this listing. Local confidence in domestic growth is holding, even if institutional investors are being more measured.

Also absent from coverage: the Public Investment Fund angle. AGBI noted that "PIF IPO involvement is expected this year." Saudi Arabia's sovereign wealth fund — with over $700 billion in assets — throwing its weight behind listings would signal major confidence in the market. That story hasn't been told yet.

What This Means for Regular People

If you're not a Gulf investor, the Saudi market matters because its stability directly affects global oil revenue flows, U.S. defense relationships, and the broader question of whether the Middle East conflict escalates into something economically catastrophic.

A Saudi market that holds together and keeps attracting capital — even under fire — means the financial contagion risk from the Iran war is, for now, contained.

That could change fast. But right now, the data shows the market is holding. Don't let the war headlines convince you Riyadh is in freefall.

It isn't. Not yet.