Saudi state-oil giant Aramco made its long-awaited debut on the Tadawul this week, when its shares began trading on 11 December. After the IPO process concluded last week (MEES, 6 December), 1.5% of the company was floated on the kingdom’s domestic stock exchange. However, this is a far cry from Crown Prince Muhammad bin Salman’s vision of a 5% listing on international exchanges in London and New York. After initially listing at $1.7 trillion, Aramco’s valuation jumped to $2 trillion on the second day of trading amid considerable government support. The key test will be whether Aramco can retain such a valuation once the initial excitement wears away.