Oasis International Leasing reports strong first quarter and new directors

The company posted a net profit of $2.3m compared with $0.4m in the first quarter of 2003 and $1.2m for the full year 2003.

"In 2003 we returned to profitability having successfully managed the effects of the economic and market downturns in 2002 and 2003 and we are pleased to have continued this improvement in the first quarter " said Gordon Dixon, Oasis Leasing's Chief Executive. "However this is a long-term business and individual quarters are not necessarily representative of the overall position. In any year there will be peaks and troughs. For instance in this quarter we traded a shipping asset and realised value, an event that we cannot necessarily repeat every quarter in a relatively young company."

At the company's Annual General Meeting in Abu Dhabi Chairman Mohammed Saif Al Mazrouei welcomed four new directors to the Board. These are Abdulhamid M Saeed, CEO of First Gulf Bank, Khaldoon Khalifa Al Mubarak, Chief Operating Officer of Mubadala Development Company, Khaled Al Mass, Assistant General Manager of Abu Dhabi Investment Company and Hussain Al Nowais a prominent business leader in Abu Dhabi.

"These experienced people will make a valuable contribution to the business, particularly in the Abu Dhabi market," said Mazrouei.

The news comes in the recent wake of Oasis Leasing's announcement that it had received institutional backing for its planned Rights Issue and intended to proceed as soon as possible. Commitments were revealed as being US $28 million by the Mubadala Development Company, US $16 million from Abu Dhabi Investment Company and US $10 million by BAE Systems.

Oasis Leasing received all the necessary authorisations and approval to increase the company's share capital through a rights issue and to increase its ceiling for non-UAE ownership to 49% in 2002.

Speaking in Abu Dhabi after the announcement of the commitments, senior officials at Abu Dhabi Investment Company commented: "We have been closely involved with the creation and development of Oasis Leasing and view this as an exciting milestone, not only for the company but for the Abu Dhabi private sector which we are keen to support. We see this as yet another way in which the two organisations will be working together to develop leasing projects and broaden the Abu Dhabi economy. We hope that similar investments might occur in the future."

Khaldoon Al Mubarak, COO of Mubadala, the recently formed, Abu Dhabi Government owned, investment and development company said, "We have always recognised the important contribution that Oasis Leasing has been making to the Abu Dhabi economy and the development of the financial services sector. It has attracted over $ 500m of investment and delivered over $280m of revenue in its 6-year history. We are very pleased to support the growth strategy of the company."

John MacBeath, Managing Director, Industrial and Business Development, BAE Systems, attended the Annual General Meeting, "We were a founding shareholder of Oasis Leasing and this commitment, which we announced in February, underlines our long-standing support of Oasis International Leasing and of the development of the United Arab Emirates' financial services sector," he said. "BAE Systems believes the cyclical nature of leasing means there will be many opportunities for Oasis Leasing to grow and diversify its asset base and to continue to generate attractive shareholder returns."