Capital Bank of Jordan US$60 Million three-year syndicated term loan facility

Arab Banking Corporation (B.S.C.) and Citibank, N.A. London are the "Mandated Lead Arrangers". The closing was marked by a signing ceremony in Bahrain today attended by the senior management of Capital Bank of Jordan.

The syndication achieved a significant oversubscription and Capital Bank of Jordan elected to increase the facility to US$60 million. Strong support came from banks in the region and international banks from Europe and North America with a total of 11 banks including the Mandated Lead Arrangers participating in the financing. A list of participating banks is attached.

On the occasion, Mr. Ali Al-Husry, Chairman of Capital Bank of Jordan thanked the Mandated Lead Arrangers and all the banks that participated in the deal for their support. Speaking on behalf of the Mandated Lead Arrangers and the participating banks, Mr. Ghazi Abdul-Jawad, President & Chief Executive of Arab Banking Corporation (B.S.C.) congratulated Capital Bank of Jordan on the success of its syndication.

Capital Bank formerly Export and Finance Bank was established in 1995. Over the past 10 years, the bank has been able to develop into a full-fledged financial institution that provides a wide array of banking products and services through its two main divisions Corporate and Retail Banking. The Bank has always specialized in Investment Banking & Capital Markets, and is currently providing these services through its investment arm subsidiary Capital Investment.

In 2005 the Bank witnessed another year of great achievements, posting net income after tax and provisions of JD21 million, a 73% increase from the previous year. Total assets grew by 68% to reach JD698 million while earnings per diluted share (EPS) have reached JD0.229. The return on average assets reached 3.82% during 2005 while the return on average equity reached 22.38%. The liquidity ratio was 133.22% compared to 100% required by the Central Bank of Jordan. In addition, CAPITAL maintained the strength of its capitalization, with a capital adequacy of 24.75% compared to the 12% required by the Central Bank of Jordan. Non-performing loans (NPLs net of interest in suspense) dropped to a record low of 1.95%, which is considered to be one of the lowest in the Jordanian banking industry. CAPITAL has also continued to pursue an aggressive NPL provisioning policy, achieving a coverage ratio of 117%. CAPITAL's total operating revenues increased by 66.5% to JD44.4 million, about half of which represented by net interest and commissions income.

CAPITAL's financial strength is rated BBB by Capital Intelligence Rating Agency.