2007
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$750m loan for FGB
A group of mandated lead arrangers has drawn up a $750 million, five year syndicated club loan for Abu Dhabi's First Gulf Bank (FGB), reported Reuters. With the facility being on a club basis, only the mandated lead arrangers will take part and there will be no further syndication. The transaction is expected to be signed in early December.
Arab Bank supports Agility deal
Jordan's Arab Bank has participated as a mandated lead arranger in the establishment of a $1.4bn loan facility for the Kuwaiti firm Agility. Other banks involved in the transaction included the HSBC, BNP Paribas and JP Morgan. The loan will be used to finance an acquisition, various investments as well as a number of projects Agility will implement mostly in the logistics sector.
Lafarge-Titan ups cement output
Egypt's Lafarge-Titan Group is to spend $180m cranking up the output at its Beni Suef cement plant by 50%, reported Reuters. The firm's production will increase from 3.1m tonnes per annum to 4.7m and 50% of the investment will come from bank loans with the remainder from its profits. Lafarge-Titan is a French-Greek joint venture.
EFG-Hermes $160.5m profit
Egyptian investment bank EFG-Hermes has earned consolidated revenue for the first nine months of the year of $279.3m, which compares to $219.1m for the whole of 2006. Meanwhile, net profit after tax and minority interest amounted to $160.5m, with 36% of this accrued during Q3. Net operating profit up to the end of September had reached $101.6m, an 88% lift over the same period last year.
AfDB supports energy projects in Egypt
The African Development Bank (AfDB) Group in Tunis has approved loans amounting to $325m to finance energy projects in Egypt. This project aims at increasing the generation capacity of the Unified Power System (UPS) by about 4% in 2012. When completed, it will contribute toward making sufficient and reliable power available to various consumers including households, agriculture, business and industries. The project is estimated to cost $1,322.73m. The AfDB loan will cover 24.5% of the total cost. Other financiers are the Islamic Development Bank, the Arab Fund, the Kuwait Fund, and the Egyptian Electricity Holding Company.
AUB $303m rights issue
Ahli United Bank, Bahrain's largest lender by market value, has received approval to raise $303mn by selling shares to existing investors, reported Reuters. The lender will sell 300 million shares to investors holding shares on Nov. 13 at $1.01 per share.
New commercial bank in Oman
Oman's central bank has cleared the way for the setting up of a new commercial bank in the country under the name of Oman Merchant Bank, reported Khaleej Times. The new bank, being founded a group of Omani and GCC investors, will have a capital of $130m, 40% of which will be offered to investors in the Sultanate through a public issue.
Saudi Pak Bank deal close
Bank Muscat is leading a consortium that may sign a deal within weeks to buy a majority stake in Pakistan's Saudi Pak Bank for as much as $218m, reported Reuters. The consortium, led by Pakistani financier Shaukat Tarin, also includes Japan's Nomura Holdings and the International Finance Corp (IFC), the World Bank's private sector arm.
Deutsche Bank opens in Qatar
Deutsche Bank officially opened its branch in the Qatar Financial Centre on 13 November, offering investment banking and private wealth management services. The bank said that this opening came after it acquired a license in January and comes as a step towards expanding across the MENA region. Besides Qatar, Deutsche Bank have branches in Dubai and Saudi Arabia.
NSGB posts 37% profit
Egypt's National Societe Generale Bank has reported a 37% rise in net profit for the first nine months of 2007 to 506.3 million Egyptian pounds ($92m), reported Reuters. Net profit for the same period in 2006 stood at 369.5 million pounds.
Foreign lenders into Iran
Tahmasb Mazaheri, the Head of the Central Bank of Iran, has said that branches of two un-named foreign banks are to be established in the Islamic Republic in the near future, reported the Iran Daily. The central bank has given its approval to the move and a third lender is set to receive the green light next week. Mazaheri suggested other foreign banks may seek to open offices in the future.
Possible expansion for PetroRabigh
Saudi Aramco and Japan's Sumitomo Chemicals are negotiating a possible expansion of their $10bn Rabigh Refining and Petrochemical Company (PetroRabigh) joint venture, reported Reuters citing Saad Al Dosari, the venture's CEO. The two firms are considering adding new product lines to the petrochemical complex which should begin operating in Q4 2008. Meanwhile, PetroRabigh is to sell a 25% stake in a Saudi-only initial public offering in January.
Ithmaar Bank appointments
Bahrain's Ithmaar Bank has appointed two new Managing Directors. Carolyn Prowse, who was formerly the Senior Manager, Investments and Joint Ventures at British Airways, becomes the MD for Mergers and Acquisitions, while Masood Tyabji, previously Head of Islamic Banking at the Gulf International Bank, takes on the role of MD for Islamic Finance.
Qafco 5 to cost $3.2bn
Khalifa Abdullah Al Sowaidi, the MD of the Qatar Fertiliser Company (Qafco), has said its Qafco 5 project will cost around $3.2bn to construct, reported The Peninsula. Two ammonia plants will have a combined output of 4,600 tonnes per day, while a urea facility will generate 3,850 tonnes per day. Qafco has now signed an initial construction agreement with Italy's Snamprogetti and South Korea's Hyundai.
Iran blasts US banking sanctions
The Governor of Iran's Central Bank Tahmasb Mazaheri has described the economic sanctions implemented against the Islamic state's banks by the US, due to its nuclear policy, as 'psychological warfare', reported Reuters. Mazaheri said the 'world is big' and the fact that one nation has blocked its banking activities does not mean it cannot conduct its business elsewhere. Analysts believe some Asian banks have yet to reduce their dealings with Tehran.
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