(Bloomberg) -- HSBC Holdings Plc is often described as a local bank in the Middle East, a perception that’s come in handy this year as initial public offering activity in the region far outpaced the levels seen in Europe.

The British lender claimed the top spot for IPOs in Europe, the Middle East and Africa for the second year running, more than doubling its market share since 2021, according to league table data compiled by Bloomberg.

“It’s only half right to call us a local bank in the Middle East,” said Chris Laing, HSBC’s head of equity capital markets for Central and Eastern Europe, the Middle East and North Africa. 

“We really are an international bank with strong local capabilities,” he said, adding that it has 6,000 to 7,000 banking professionals in the region, and the largest emerging markets salesforce in New York, London and Hong Kong. 

Banking capabilities aside, HSBC’s market-share gains have largely stemmed from the growing divide between EMEA’s top IPO markets. While the listings boom in the Middle East shows no signs of abating, spurred by large state-led privatizations and a booming local economy, European listing centers are struggling to cope with rapid de-equitization and increased competition from deeper capital pools in New York.

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More than $9 billion has been raised from Middle Eastern IPOs this year, with the region accounting for about 40% of the proceeds raised across EMEA, data compiled by Bloomberg shows.

And investors can’t seem to get enough of Gulf IPOs, with local investors and international asset managers vying for relatively small stakes in the target companies. “The problem with these deals is that they are almost too successful,” said Laing.

Dubai Taxi Co., the government’s first IPO after a year long hiatus, received more than $41 billion of investor orders for its $315 million offering, while Adnoc Gas Plc’ $2.5 billion Abu Dhabi IPO — the region’s biggest this year — was more than 50 times oversubscribed. Saudi oil driller ADES Holding Co.’s $1.2 billion offering was almost 63 times covered.

Although order books tend to skew local, international investors often end up with a fair share of allocations, taking up 20% to 30% of the book, even if they represent only 10% of demand, Laing said.

Read More: Dubai’s Latest IPO Record Shows Investor Appetite Is Unwavering

With IPOs now a mainstay, regulators and banks in the region have more ambitious plans for next year. Expect the range of deals types to broaden, with block trades and other share sales, listings by private companies and even cross-border IPOs being introduced.

“The region does have a strong ambition to become a global center for listings, and certainly in our pipeline we have a handful of international candidates that are looking to list in Saudi Arabia, from Asia, but also from elsewhere,” said Laing. 

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