Saudi food giant Almarai buys Bakemart in UAE, Bahrain

Bakemart operates in the UAE and Bahrain and has 800 employees. (Supplied)
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Updated 17 March 2021
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Saudi food giant Almarai buys Bakemart in UAE, Bahrain

  • Bakemart makes breads and pastries for the regional food service and retail sector

RIYADH: Saudi food giant Almarai acquired the UAE and Bahrain operations of Bakemart in a deal worth SR95.5 million ($25.5 million).

Almarai signed an agreement with the shareholders of Bakemart UAE and Bakemart Bahrain on March 15 to acquire 100 percent of their shares, the company said in a filing with the Saudi Stock Exchange (Tadawul) on Tuesday.

The deal was fully financed from Almarai’s operating cash flow, and the financial impact will be reflected in its next quarterly results, according to the Tadawul filing.

The acquisition will further expand Almarai’s bakery product offering and enhance its contribution to the Kingdom’s food security in line with Saudi Vision 2030. 

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• The deal was fully financed from Almarai’s operating cash flow, and the financial impact would be reflected in its next quarterly results, according to Tadawul filing.

• The acquisition will further expand Almarai’s bakery product offering and enhance its contribution to the Kingdom’s food security in line with Saudi Vision 2030.

Bakemart makes breads and pastries for the regional food service and retail sector. It was originally founded in 2003 and has two production factories in the UAE and a workforce of 800, according to its website.

Almarai has also announced the appointment of its new CEO Abdullah Nasser Al Bader. Prior to this appointment Al Bader was the executive vice president for Almarai’s bakery line since 2015.

The company in January also announced its annual consolidated financial results for the year ended December 31, 2020. Revenue for the fourth quarter 2020 amounted to SR 3.819 billion, a quarter-on-quarter increase of 3.1 percent. Operating profit for the fourth quarter amounted to SR500.2 million, a quarter-on-quarter increase of 0.4 percent.


No Saudi acquisition offers: FC Barcelona tells Al-Eqtisadiah

Updated 16 December 2025
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No Saudi acquisition offers: FC Barcelona tells Al-Eqtisadiah

CAIRO: FC Barcelona has not received any offers, whether from Saudi Arabia or elsewhere, to acquire the club, according to an official source who spoke to Al-Eqtisadiah.

According to the source, the circulating news regarding the possibility of finalizing a deal to acquire the club in the coming period is a mere rumor.

Recent Spanish reports had indicated the possibility of a Saudi acquisition of Barcelona shares for around €10 billion ($11.7 billion), a move considered capable of saving the club from its financial crises if it were to happen, especially as it suffers from debts estimated at around €2.5 billion.

Sale not in management’s hands

Joan Gaspart, the former president of the club, confirmed that the current board of directors, chaired by Joan Laporta, does not have the right to dispose of the club’s ownership.

He added: “FC Barcelona is owned by about 150,000 members, and selling the club is something the owners will not accept. FC Barcelona possesses something no other club in the world has; money is very important, and so is passion, but the sentiment of the members today is to continue what the club has been for 125 years.”

High market value

Despite the financial crisis the club has been going through in recent years, FC Barcelona ranks sixth on the list of the world’s highest market value clubs, with an estimated value of €1.12 billion, according to Transfermarkt. Meanwhile, its rival Real Madrid tops the list with a market value of €1.38 billion.