Strengthening its Middle East operations:

Dubai, UAE, 10th May 2009: The 1.5 billion Dirham conglomerate, Almasa IT Distribution, a subsidiary of Dubai-based Almasa Holdings, has acquired Delta Business Products, a leading wholesale distributor and IT solutions service provider in the MENA region.

With a 14-year track record, Delta Business Products is a well-established transnational distributor of data storage, printer supplies, PC accessories and peripherals from premium brands throughout the Gulf.  Delta is one of the most preferred distributors to the organized retail channels across the Gulf countries with in country operations.

This strategic acquisition is part of Almasa's aggressive growth and expansion plans for the Middle East. This will broaden the company's product portfolio, enabling it to deliver end-to-end business IT solutions. Almasa's leadership in logistics, ERP system, vendor relations and finance will guarantee world class standards in the retail channel.

The acquisition will cement Almasa's position as the preferred partner for target customers and vendors by extending its operations to six cities across five Middle East countries, dedicated solely to more than 370 major power retailers such as Carrefour and Plug-ins within the UAE, Oman, Qatar, Kuwait and Saudi Arabia (Riyadh & Jeddah).

Mehdi Amjad, Chairman and CEO of Almasa IT Distribution said: "Our mission is to provide value added services, maintaining our leadership across all IT sectors through our one-stop-shop offering for retailers. This approach will provide maximum ROI for our stakeholders."

Mr. Govinda K.Siddartha, MD of Delta Business said "This merger is a win-win strategy for both companies. The synergy that this merger will bring will benefit our customers and vendors in terms of multi-country logistics, manpower and financial strengths. Cost rationalization with combined back office will be an added advantage."

With Almasa's substantial scale and resources, the company will be able to deliver industry leading products and services that address the rapidly expanding business optimisation market.

Besides being a strong player in small, medium businesses (SMBs) and the corporate reseller channel, this investment will enable Almasa IT Distribution to emerge as a key distributor in the retail channel.

In just 10 years, Almasa has grown, under Mr. Amjad's   direction, to become one of the biggest IT distributors in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region focused on innovation, growth and choice for users and organisations of all sizes.

-Ends-

Almasa started out in computer hardware distribution but expanded into all other areas of information technology over the years, including manufacturing and assembly, software development, networking solutions, hardware repair and maintenance, software distribution, as well as online hiring solutions.
 
Almasa Holdings employs over 250 people with some 30 different nationalities across its six member-companies. It covers and operates in more than 60 countries, from the Middle East to North Africa, and Asia to Europe. The group has offices in 12 countries, with the biggest being its headquarters in Dubai.
 
Almasa IT Distribution, the group's core company, is today one of the biggest IT distributors in the Middle East and North Africa, representing top international brands such as HP, Maxtor, Avaya, Hitachi, and Microsoft among others. It has been voted among the top three MENA region's IT distributor for the third year running (source: ITP).

For further information please visit our website www.almasa.com  or contact:
Janet Noronha, Manager - Marketing and Communications
Almasa IT Distribution FZCO
Tel: +971 4 3063 117
Fax: +971 4 3063 111
Email: janet@almasa.com

© Press Release 2009