Naseej Founders to launch IPO on November 18

The announcement, which comes amidst growing market turmoil brought about by the global credit crisis, is a remarkable show of confidence in the GCC region's financial stability and marks a bold bid at reassuring investors and restoring confidence.

Ithmaar Bank Chairman Khalid Abdulla-Janahi said IPO plans made before the financial crisis broke out would proceed as planned and stressed the importance of "investing in the region." The IPO plans involve taking a 40% stake in Naseej public.

Naseej, a BD2bn ($5.33bn) company with a paid up capital of BD250m ($663m), was created in June after Ithmaar Bank brought together major regional investors from both the private and public sectors to raise 60% of the paid up capital. Ithmaar Bank had then said it would be making the remaining 40% available to the public by the end of the year.

Naseej will manage the entire spectrum of the construction and real estate business, from the initial planning stages, to manufacture of building materials, financing, and marketing advisory services for developments. In doing so, it will create unprecedented synergies that will help create affordable housing solutions to the general public.

"The Naseej IPO is one of the largest to be launched from Bahrain - and the decision to proceed with our initial timelines despite the ongoing international financial crisis will show the world just how stable this region really is,"

said Abdulla-Janahi.

"Some of the region's biggest, most sophisticated financial institutions are participating in Naseej - either as founding shareholders or as underwriters - and we are collectively confident that this is the right way forward," he said.

"We could have opted to wait-and-see," said Abdulla-Janahi. "We choose not to because we see very compelling moral and financial arguments to continue with our original timelines," he said.