Hala,
Dubai’s RTA is unleashing a $217.43M overhaul on Al Qudra Street — featuring several interchanges, 2,700m of bridges, and an 11.6km expansion that slashes travel time from 9.4 to 2.8 minutes (1) This development is swooping in to save Dubai’s traffic circus — chaos, begone! 🎪🤡🚦
amana’s Crypto Take
- Solana’s pre-unlock jitters? SOL is feeling the heat ahead of a massive token unlock, slipping 5.5% in the last 24 hours to $160. With 11.2 million SOL ($1.78B) set to hit the market on March 1 — thanks to FTX’s bankruptcy saga — traders are bracing for impact.
- The collapse of Sam Bankman-Fried’s empire keeps sending shockwaves, this time in the form of a major supply dump. Historically, big unlocks crank up selling pressure, and on-chain data isn’t helping: negative funding rates suggest traders are already betting on more downside.
- Can demand hold the line? If buyers don’t step up, SOL could be in for a rough ride. Market sentiment and liquidity will be key in the coming days — because in crypto, what goes down doesn’t always come back up.
Stock Market Update
🛝↘️ Wall Street’s trading floor turned into a slip ‘n slide on Friday as fresh U.S. data hinted at a slowing economy and sticky inflation, sending investors to dive for safer assets — the Dow slipped 1.69% to 43,428.02, the S&P 500 slid 1.71% to 6,013.13, and the Nasdaq 100 fell 2.06% to 21,614.08. Even fan favorites like Nvidia and Palantir got caught in the freefall.(2) What a way to end the week. ⏬🔽
🔻📉 UAE stocks joined the red party, with Dubai shedding 0.4% to 5,359 on profit-taking and Abu Dhabi easing 0.01% to 9,618, weighed down by Alpha Dhabi and Lulu Retail.(3) ⏬⬇️
💻🌟 Alpha Data’s Digital Crescendo: A New IPO Star on the Horizon!
Alpha Data, the UAE’s technology services company, is tuning up for a blockbuster debut with its IPO — aiming to raise up to $163 million.(4) This first-of-its-kind offering for the year is set to electrify the Abu Dhabi Securities Exchange on or about March 11, heralding a fresh beat in the digital arena. 🌐🤖
💡⚙️ High Tech Highlights:
- Share Sale: 400 million shares ready to rock the Abu Dhabi trading stage.
- Price Beat: AED 1.45 ($0.39)–1.50 ($0.41) per share, setting a market cap between AED 1.45 and 1.50 billion.
- Top-End Market Cap: At the top end, this implies a market capitalization of $408 million.
- Dividend Delight: A projected AED 130 million dividend in 2025, striking a yield around 9%.
- Bookbuilding Beat: Final offer price on February 26 with trading slated for about March 11.
- Financial Forte: A 2024 performance boasting AED 127 million in net profit and AED 2.32 billion in revenue. 📊💰
🌠🎸 Encore for Alpha Data’s Ascent
As the digital cosmos watches, Alpha Data is primed to shine like a freshly minted star in the tech firmament. With its robust fundamentals and innovative spark, this IPO is composing a new symphony in the UAE’s dynamic market — ready to leave investors humming long after the final note. 🚀✨
Closer to Home
- 🏦 UAE’s Sharjah Islamic Bank gave a hearty nod to a 15% cash dividend (AED458.7M) to celebrate record profits for 2024 — net profit before tax up 36.5% to AED1.15B.(5) That’s a win you can bank on. 🤑
- 📈 First Abu Dhabi Bank projects GCC equity markets to deliver 12–13% returns in 2025, fueled by a revival in key sectors like petrochemicals and smooth financial-geopolitical sailing.(6) #BuckleIn 💸
- 🏢 In a bold digital leap, Qatar’s government just inked a five-year deal with AI data company Scale AI to turbocharge services with smart tools.(7) Talk about turning sand into silicon! 🤖
What Else Is Trending
- 🏆 European stocks and the euro firmed on Monday after Germany’s closely watched elections delivered what media called a “mainstream” outcome.(8) Friedrich Merz, the country’s new conservative leader, is set to take the reins as chancellor. The news sent the DAX soaring 1.2% and the euro climbing 0.44% to $1.0507 on Monday.(9) Europe’s turning a new page with a bang! 📈
- 🛢️ Meanwhile, on Friday, oil prices slid over $2 as Mideast risk premium faded and Ukraine peace jitters cooled investor fervor — Brent dropped 2.68% to $74.43 and WTI slid 2.87% to $70.40.(10) ↘️
- 📉 Meanwhile, profit-hungry investors cashed in on record gold highs, nudging spot gold down 0.1% to $2,939.63.(11) 🪙
💬Quote of the Day
“We are all in the gutter, but some of us are looking at the stars.” — Oscar Wilde, Irish poet and playwright
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Sources:(1) (4) (5) (6) (7) Zawya, (2) CNBC, (3) (8) (9) (10) (11) Reuters
