Bahrain's Ithmaar Holding to get $300mln capital boost

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MANAMA: Ithmaar Holding will get injection of up to $300 million in new capital during the second half of 2019, the firm said in a bourse filing yesterday.

The filing to Bahrain Bourse (BHB) said a major shareholder informed the company’s board that it was considering injection of new capital.

The board, it said, is in discussions to recapitalise Ithmaar Holding during 2019 and is reviewing plans that include restructuring existing share capital by setting off the accumulated losses against the share capital.

The Bahrain-based holding company is licensed and regulated as a category 1 investment firm by the Central Bank of Bahrain and listed on BHB, Boursa Kuwait and Dubai Financial Market.

Ithmaar Holding owns two wholly-owned subsidiaries, Ithmaar Bank, an Islamic retail bank which holds the core retail banking business, and IB Capital, an investment firm, which holds investments and other non-core assets.

According to information on BHB, its two major shareholders are Dar Al Maal Al Islami Trust holding 26.08 per cent and Islamic Investment Company of the Gulf with 19.6pc stake.

Trading in Ithmaar Holding shares was suspended for an hour yesterday till 10.30am as BHB awaited details of the securities recapitalisation plan.

On Saturday, the firm said trading of its shares on Boursa Kuwait was suspended last Thursday in accordance with Article 9.8.2 of the exchange’s rules relating to companies whose accumulated losses exceed 75pc of the share capital. Ithmaar Holding said the accumulated losses, as of end-December 2018, represent mainly impairment provisions resulting from non-core investments.

The firm’s shareholders’ equity as of end-December was $116m.

The capital plans are being reviewed and will be announced in due course, following necessary shareholder and regulatory approvals.

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