Noon.com could be publicly listed in 5-7 years, says Alabbar

Noon.com, the new $1 billion e-commerce platform launched by Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund (PIF) and Dubai billionaire Mohamed Alabbar, could be publicly listed within five to seven years, Alabbar said in a statement.

He added that shareholders are waiting for favorable market conditions before launching an initial public offering (IPO).

The new online shopping platform is scheduled to go online in January 2017 in the United Arab Emirates and Saudi Arabia. It will have same-day delivery for products, such as clothing, and has plans to extend its presence to other Middle East markets in the near-term, Alabbar said in a statement seen by Argaam.

The website will offer 20 million products for online shoppers, including fashion, books, home and garden, electronics, sports and outdoor, health and beauty, personal care, toys, children's and baby products.

In the statement, Alabbar denied news that PIF had acquired his stake in Noon via Japan's SoftBank Group.

Dubai-based courier Aramex, in which Alabbar purchased the founder’s stake in July, will take on Noon.com’s logistics operations, while PIF will own a 50 percent stake in the Riyadh-based company. 

Write to Reem Abdellatif at reem.a@argaam.com