Solidarity announces completion of first phase of capital increase

The increase is aimed at further enhancing Solidarity's operations success and helping it to implement its strategy of expansion in major international markets.

During the first quarter of 2006, Solidarity initially announced an increase of its capital by US$175 million, raising its paid up capital from US$ 100 million to US$275 million and its authorized capital to US$500 million.

Upon this latest announcement, Mr. Sameer Ebrahim Al Wazzan, Solidarity Chief Executive Officer said, "I am thrilled to announce that this US$ 50 million first phase of our share subscription process from Right Issues has been completed. We had set a timeline for the capital increase, and are pleased that we are on track to complete all phases of the increase by later this year."

He continued, "We plan to complete the second phase of its increase of capital through a private placement amounting to US$75 million. The third phase will be through an IPO, aiming to raise US$50 million by the end of this year. We are also aiming to have Solidarity's shares listed on the Bahrain Stock Exchange and additional Gulf stock exchanges by the end of 2006."

Given the increase in demand for Takaful products worldwide, the capital increase will give a further boost to Solidarity's growth and will help provide a wider range of family and general Takaful products in the markets not yet penetrated by them.

Al Wazzan added, "Solidarity has achieved astounding success over the last few years, in terms of strategic growth and regional expansion. We have realized the extent of progress achieved since our inception, and have devised a plan that fits in line with our corporate strategy. The capital increase is our first major step towards taking the company to a new level."

He added, "To that end, we will be working with financial and legal advisors, in order to appoint a consulting firm for an IPO. We would like to have a prospectus completed before the end of this year, in order to publicly launch to new shareholders. Due to these plans, we will work aggressively to adhere to our planned phase dates for the capital increase, in order to solidify the confidence of the shareholders and customers alike."

"With the signing of many strategic agreements and marketing partnerships, we have furthered our presence on the regional level and look forward to continue our success in the markets of Sultanate of Oman, Malaysia, UAE, Kuwait, Lebanon, and Egypt in addition to our existing markets." Al Wazzan concluded.