Ithmaar Bank and Shamil Bank raise $200m in successful first closing of $500 m private equity fund

There are few initial investors, and now the opportunity will be shown to selective other investors. The closed-ended investment fund, established under the laws of the Kingdom of Bahrain, provides investors with the opportunity to access alternative asset investments globally, covering real estate, the general private equity sector and, possibly, Sharia-compliant hedge funds. The Fund will have a special emphasis on the high growth regions of the Middle East, North Africa and South Asia (MENASA).

The Fund will be operated in compliance with Sharia Principles. Ithmaar Bank and Shamil Bank are founding sponsors of the Fund, while the former is also acting as its investment manager.

IICG also has a seat on the Investment Committee. Both Ithmaar Bank and Shamil Bank are members of the Ithmaar banking group, one of the most diversified of its kind in the Middle East.

"The first closing of the Aldar Private Equity Fund reflects confidence in our fund management ability. This Fund is one of many alternative asset and private equity funds that we will be rolling out in the coming months and years," said Ithmaar Bank CEO and Member of the Board, Michael P. Lee.

Lee will be acting as Chairman of the Fund's Investment Committee, which also includes Shamil Bank Chief Executive and Member of the Board, Mohammed Hussain.

"One of the main objectives of the Fund will be to invest in companies just before expected surges in revenues and profits. Investment opportunities in Asia are particularly attractive, given the recent economic performance in China and India," remarked Hussain.

With 35 years of experience in international finance and a deep knowledge of the region, Lee's background includes a strong track record in private equity. He was Deputy Chairman & Managing Director of Emerging Markets Partnership (Bahrain) (EMP Bahrain), which founded and managed the highly successful $730.5m Islamic Development Bank (IDB) Infrastructure Fund L.P. (he now sits on the Fund's Policy Management Board); a Managing Director at Merrill Lynch-White Weld Capital Markets, where he headed the international investment banking group responsible for financial institutions/private placements; and CEO of Dean Witter Capital Markets - International Ltd, lead managing innovative transactions for multilateral, governmental, financial institutional and corporate clients and advising private equity funds.

Hussain is a seasoned commercial and investment banker, who joined Shamil Bank at its inception in 2000 and served in other senior positions before being appointed Chief Executive. He is the former General Manager of Islamic Investment Company of the Gulf (Bahrain), prior to its merger with Faysal Islamic Bank of Bahrain. Prior to that he served as Senior Vice President at Smith Barney Inc. Bahrain, Director, Marketing and Finance at Bahrain International Bank and Assistant Vice President at Gulf International Bank. He currently serves on the board of Meezan Bank (Pakistan), Eskan Bank (Bahrain), EMP Bahrain and the Bahrain Institute of Banking and Finance.