According to the Wall Street Journal, Saudi Aramco was considering a two-stage initial public offering (IPO) in which it would list a portion of its shares on the Saudi stock exchange (Tadawul) later this year and follow up with an international offering in 2020 or 2021.
Saudi Aramco tends to offer its shares globally in Tokyo, the WST newspaper said.
In the same context, Saudi Aramco's sources told Al-Arabiya TV that the location and timing of the IPO would depend on market conditions and the owner's decision.
WST referredthat it continued to work with its owner to complete the preparation for the IPO.
JPMorgan, Morgan Stanley, and HSBC banks were selected to take the lead in theworld's largest IPO when the plan was first announced in 2016.
Boutique investment banks Moelis & Co (MC.N) and Evercore (EVR.N) were also hired by Saudi Aramco as independent advisers.
Al-Falih, who also chairs Aramco, said in early July that the company was ready to start work on the long-awaited IPO, adding that the IPO could take place in 2020-2021.
Sources told Bloomberg that global banks are heading to Saudi Arabia to compete for Saudi Aramco's IPO, the world's biggest-ever.
Aramcohad invited 20 US, European, and Asian banks to bid in the 2020-awaited IPO,the sources said.
Aramco,which made a profit of nearly $47bn in the first six months of this year,resumed preparations for a public offering on its shares after it was postponedto complete its acquisition of 70% of SABIC.
Lazardand Moelis & Co are expected to play a key role in the selection ofparticipating banks and underwriters.
