Abu Dhabi Securities Exchange paid Dh25 billion in cash dividends to investors on behalf of its listed firms, marking a 7 per cent increase over the previous year, according to the bourse.
Around 572,774 investors received dividends, of which about 70 per cent were UAE investors, with just under a third from other GCC countries and the remainder were foreign investors. Around 7,442 institutional investors also received cash dividends.
“The increase in the size of cash dividends is a clear sign of how well ADX-listed companies are performing. It also shows the attractiveness of our investment environment which is served by a supportive and efficient dual economic and legislative structure in the UAE," said ADX acting chief executive Khalifa Salem Al Mansouri.
"We are committed to offering a stable trading environment that will provide valuable returns on investments through cash dividends to stakeholders and foreign and local investors," he added.
The Abu Dhabi bourse recently partnered with the UAE's First Abu Dhabi Bank to distribute cash dividends to registered investors electronically through its digital wallet.
The banking sector distributed just over half of the total dividends, or Dh13.1bn, while the telecoms sector distributed 28 per cent, or Dh7.1bn. About 9 per cent (Dh2.3bn) of the dividends came from the energy sector, and 6 per cent (Dh1.41bn) from insurance firms.
Services accounted for 2 per cent of total cash dividends at Dh420 million, with the remainder being provided by industrial, investments, financial services, consumer goods and private companies.
The Abu Dhabi exchange witnessed a nearly 93 per cent increase in net institutional investments from the beginning of the year until the end of August to reach Dh2.6bn, compared with Dh1.4bn for the same period in 2018.
Net foreign investment on the ADX more than doubled to reach Dh3bn in the year to the end of August. There were 333 institutional investors in listed Abu Dhabi stocks during the period, of which 80 per cent were foreign institutions.
