Swicorp awarded investment banking license by Saudi Capital Market Authority

Swicorp will be incorporated as a Saudi closed joint stock company in partnership with a consortium of leading Saudi corporations and individuals.

The license will enable Swicorp to engage in four areas of securities activity in Saudi Arabia: arranging equity and debt capital raising (initial public offerings, rights issues, debt financing etc); corporate finance advisory services (mergers and acquisitions, joint ventures and strategic advisory projects); underwriting; and asset management (with a particular focus on private equity).

Kamel Lazaar, Swicorp's President and CEO said,

"This represents an important milestone in consolidating Swicorp's position as a leading player in investment banking and private equity in the region. Swicorp's proven regional expertise and the international perspective brought by our extensive team of experienced investment banking professionals will enable us to offer the highest level of financial services to companies and investors in Saudi Arabia and across the MENA region".

Founded in Switzerland in 1987, Swicorp has nearly twenty years of experience in corporate finance, mergers and acquisitions and private equity across the Middle East and North Africa (MENA). Following the license award, Swicorp will move its group headquarters to Riyadh and establish a formal office in Jeddah to add to its existing offices in Geneva, Tunis, Tehran and Algiers. While Swicorp will be headquartered in Riyadh, the Geneva office will continue to play a key role in the development of the company and the development of our activities between European and international markets and MENA.

Additional offices are planned for Dubai and Dammam over the next twelve months, bringing the total number of Swicorp offices to 8 by the start of 2007.

"Saudi Arabia represents Swicorp's most important market and our decision to transfer our group headquarters from Switzerland to Riyadh underlines our confidence in the future prospects of the Saudi market and the attractive opportunities it presents," continued Kamel Lazaar. "We are honoured by the trust the CMA has placed in us and are committed to playing a full part in maintaining the integrity and continued development of Saudi Arabia's capital markets."

Swicorp has an extensive track record of pioneering investment banking transactions across the MENA region, including advising on the Kingdom's first leveraged buy-out, first private placement, first corporate venture fund and one of only two mergers of listed companies seen in Saudi Arabia to-date. The firm is currently active in a wide range of capital market and advisory projects, including two initial public offerings expected in the coming months and three rights issues completed since the start of the year.

Swicorp is also a leading player in the private equity arena, with three private equity funds totaling nearly USD 1.3 billion in commitments, which seek to leverage Swicorp's in-depth regional knowledge, extensive network and regional contacts and help meet the strong demand for investment in Saudi Arabia and across the MENA region. Swicorp Joussour, a closed-ended private equity company (fund) launched in December 2005 with over USD850 million already committed and an expected final closing of USD 1 billion, will invest in the energy, petrochemicals and energyintensive sectors; it is believed to be the largest cloesd-end private equity fund raised in the MENA region to-date. Swicorp also manages the Swicorp Intaj Capital Fund (target capitalization of USD 200 million), a diversified private equity fund targeting growing consumer-related sectors in the MENA region, and the Swicorp Emerge Invest Fund, an open ended private equity fund focusing on Algeria, Iran and Sudan (over USD 100 million already committed).