Abu Dhabi-headquartered First Abu Dhabi Bank (FAB) has clarified that it was not currently evaluating an offer for Britain’s Standard Chartered.

In January, FAB, the UAE’s largest bank, was considering a takeover bid for the London-headquartered bank. On Thursday, Bloomberg reported that FAB was “exploring” a 35-billion offer.

However, in a clarification announcement to Abu Dhabi Securities Exchange, FAB has denied such speculations.

FAB noted that in January it was at “very early stages” of evaluating a possible offer for Standard Chartered but “was no longer doing so”.

“First Abu Dhabi Bank PJSC notes the recent press speculation in relation to Standard Chartered and re-iterates that it is not evaluating a possible offer for Standard Chartered,” the bank said in a statement.

“Accordingly, First Abu Dhabi Bank, and any person acting in concert with it, is bound by the restrictions under Rule 2.8 of the UK Code and Rule 31.1(c) of the Hong Kong Code on Takeovers and Mergers.”

But the bank underlined that it and any person acting in concert with FAB “reserves the right to announce an offer or possible offer for the company or make or participate in an offer or possible offer for the company and/or take any other action” within six months of the date of this announcement in the following circumstances: with the agreement of the board of the company; if a third party announces a firm intention to make an offer for the company; if the company announces a Rule 9 waiver proposal for the purposes of the UK Code or a “whitewash” proposal for the purposes of the HK Code or a reverse takeover; and/or if there has been a material change of circumstances (as determined by the Panel on Takeovers and Mergers and the Takeovers Executive of the Securities and Futures Commission of Hong Kong.

Last month, FAB reported a group net profit of Dh13.4 billion during 2022, up 7 per cent year-on-year compared to the same period in 2021, with earnings per share at Dh1.18.

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