LONDON: HSBC and Credit Suisse have been selected to advise on a possible merger between Ahli United Bank (AUB) and Kuwait Finance House (KFH), AUB said on Sunday.
A merger between Bahrain’s largest bank and Kuwait’s biggest Islamic lender would be the first cross-border tie-up between Gulf banks in recent years at a time when several other banks are consolidating.
HSBC and Credit Suisse were selected to complete studies to assist AUB and KFH in arriving at a fair share exchange ratio, the statement said, without specifying which investment bank was advising which lender.
If agreement on the share exchange ratio is reached, the next step would be the initiation of due diligence and other steps.
KFH said last week it had invited AUB to begin a due diligence process for a potential merger.
The deal provides a non-binding framework to explore the creation of “a major regional banking institution capable of competing more effectively in its existing and new potential markets,” AUB Chairman Hamad Al-Humaidhi said.
Separately, AUB also said its net profit for the second-quarter was $182.7 million, up 20.3 percent from a year earlier.
Shares in AUB rose 6.8 percent earlier this month to the highest levels since April 2017, and led to the Manama, Bahrain-based lender being valued at $5.66 billion.
KFH declined as much as 1.3 percent for a market value of about $12.8 billion.
Bahrain, which is a key Saudi Arabian ally and home to the US’ Fifth Fleet, hired investment bank Lazard to advise on how to boost its public finances, according to sources with knowledge of the matter.
HSBC, Credit Suisse to advise on Kuwait’s KFH, Bahrain’s AUB merger talks
HSBC, Credit Suisse to advise on Kuwait’s KFH, Bahrain’s AUB merger talks
- KFH declined as much as 1.3 percent for a market value of about $12.8 billion
QatarEnergy announces force majeure following Iran attacks: statement
DOHA: Qatar’s state-run energy firm on Wednesday declared force majeure following attacks on two of its main facilities that halted liquefied natural gas production and as Iran pressed missile and drone attacks across the Gulf.
“Further to the announcement by QatarEnergy to stop production of liquefied natural gas and associated products, QatarEnergy has declared Force Majeure to its affected buyers,” the company said in a statement.
QatarEnergy invoked the clause, which shields it from penalties and potential breach of contract claims from clients, after stopping LNG production on Monday.
Iranian drones attacked two of the company’s main production hubs in Ras Laffan Industrial City, 80 km north of Doha and in Mesaieed 40 km south of the Qatari capital, Doha’s ministry of defense said at the time.
The Gulf state is one of the world’s top liquefied natural gas producers, alongside the US, Australia and Russia.
On Tuesday, QatarEnergy said it would halt some downstream production of some products including urea, polymers, methanol, aluminum and others.
Qatar shares the world’s largest natural gas reservoir with Iran.
QatarEnergy estimates the Gulf state’s portion of the reservoir, the North Field, holds about 10 percent of the world’s known natural gas reserves.
In recent years, Qatar has inked a series of long-term LNG deals with France’s Total, Britain’s Shell, India’s Petronet, China’s Sinopec and Italy’s Eni, among others.
