AMMAN -- A Hong Kong-based investment fund on Sunday announced it has acquired Jordan Dubai Capital (JD Capital) for JD92 million.
At a press conference held in Amman, HPF Private Investment Fund Company Ltd. (HPF) said it has bought full ownership of JD Capital from Dubai International Capital and other shareholders, including Jordan's Social Security Investment Fund, Arab Bank, the Bahrain-based Addax Bank and a number of other investors.
The price per share was valued at JD0.90 in the deal.
Mahesh Harilela, representative of HPF, said the fund was established in January of this year by a group of investors from Hong Kong, China and Europe with the purpose of carrying out investments in the Middle East and North Africa.
He told journalists that the company has set up a $150 million fund to target projects in the fields of infrastructure and real estate development in the region.
The assets of JD Capital, which was established in 2005, include Jordan Dubai Properties, specialised in developing real estate, hospitality and leisure projects; Jordan Dubai Islamic Bank and First Insurance, an Islamic insurer; and investments in the energy sector.
Asked whether the Jordan Dubai Islamic Bank will be fully owned by HPF after the acquisition deal, Ismail Tahboub, JD Capital chief executive officer, explained the HPF bought only the company's equity in the Islamic bank, whose largest share is owned by Dubai Islamic Bank.
"We did not buy the bank but only a share," Harilela elaborated, adding that entering the Jordanian market represents the first step to entering the region.
Responding to a question on the "young" portfolio of the fund, Harilela said the entity was started to enter the Levant region.
Asked on whether the investors would list the company on the Amman Stock Exchange, he replied "it is too soon to say if we plan to", adding that investors need to evaluate where their businesses are heading.
As the region is affected by the instability of the Arab Spring, Harilela said this was the best time to invest in the region, particularly in Jordan which is "a stable and geographically distinguished country".
Tahboub noted that the new investors will change the company's name, JD Capital, within six months.
Since Tahboub mentioned that financial return for investors in JD Capital diversified schemes was only 2 per cent per year, Harilela was asked if the figure discouraged HPF before the acquisition.
"Not at all. Yes it is a horrible number when you look at the assets and activities of the firm," he said, adding that the fund anticipates 9 per cent to 10 per cent return in the future.
© Jordan Times 2012
