15 May 2008
KUWAIT: An unidentified investor from the United Arab Emirates wants to buy a majority stake in Bahraini lender Ahli United Bank, a Kuwaiti newspaper said yesterday. The investor would pay $3 per share, well above Tuesday's closing price of $1.25, for the stake and wanted to hold talks with one of Ahli's major shareholders, Al-Watan newspaper said in an unsourced report.
"No official offer has been made yet," the paper said, adding that a Kuwaiti investment firm, which has strong relations with the UAE investor, was trying to broker a deal. Last summer, the Bahraini lender had been targeted by International Bank of Qatar, an affiliate of National Bank of Kuwait, which made a $6.1 billion offer.
But in August, Kuwait's Tamdeen Investment Co, which was then Ahli's second-largest shareholder, turned down the bid. Tamdeen is now the third-largest investor in the bank with a 10.09 percent stake after a Kuwaiti and a Bahraini pension fund, according to the Kuwaiti bourse website.
KUWAIT: An unidentified investor from the United Arab Emirates wants to buy a majority stake in Bahraini lender Ahli United Bank, a Kuwaiti newspaper said yesterday. The investor would pay $3 per share, well above Tuesday's closing price of $1.25, for the stake and wanted to hold talks with one of Ahli's major shareholders, Al-Watan newspaper said in an unsourced report.
"No official offer has been made yet," the paper said, adding that a Kuwaiti investment firm, which has strong relations with the UAE investor, was trying to broker a deal. Last summer, the Bahraini lender had been targeted by International Bank of Qatar, an affiliate of National Bank of Kuwait, which made a $6.1 billion offer.
But in August, Kuwait's Tamdeen Investment Co, which was then Ahli's second-largest shareholder, turned down the bid. Tamdeen is now the third-largest investor in the bank with a 10.09 percent stake after a Kuwaiti and a Bahraini pension fund, according to the Kuwaiti bourse website.
© Kuwait Times 2008
