Kuwait Finance House to purchase Bahrain's Ahli United for $11.6 billion.

KFH will offer one share for every 2.695 shares of Ahli, implying an offer price of $1.04 per share. (Twitter @KFHGroup)
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Updated 07 July 2022
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Kuwait Finance House to purchase Bahrain's Ahli United for $11.6 billion.

  • As a rare cross border deal in the Middle East, it would create the Gulf’s seventh-largest lender

KUWAIT: Kuwait Finance House (KFH) has agreed to purchase Bahrain's Ahli United for approximately $11.6 billion.

The deal, which has been in the works for nearly four years, would be among the largest in the banking sector this year.

As a rare cross border deal in the Middle East, it would create the Gulf’s seventh-largest lender with $115bn in assets.

KFH will offer one share for every 2.695 shares of Ahli, implying an offer price of $1.04 per share, a 13% premium to the stock's Wednesday close.Kuwait's central bank, which had asked KFH to reconsider the deal during the pandemic in 2020, approved the purchase on Wednesday.

The initial offer in 2019 was worth $8.8 billion, with KFH offering one share for every 2.32558 Ahli shares.

KFH’s shares have risen 66% since then, valuing the lender at $25.8 billion. Ahli is up 27% in the same period, giving the bank a market value of $10.3 billion.

Lenders in the region are starting to combine locally after the twin shocks of lower energy revenues and the pandemic.


Saudi Arabia leads outcome-based education to prepare future-ready generations: Harvard Business Review

A Harvard sign is seen at the Harvard University campus in Boston, Massachusetts, on May 27, 2025. (AFP)
Updated 10 February 2026
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Saudi Arabia leads outcome-based education to prepare future-ready generations: Harvard Business Review

  • The Riyadh-based school group developed a strategy that links every classroom activity to measurable student competencies, aiming to graduate learners equipped for the digital economy and real-world contexts

RIYADH: Saudi Arabia’s education system is undergoing a sweeping transformation aligned with Vision 2030, shifting from traditional, input-focused methods to outcome-based education designed to equip students with future-ready skills, Harvard Business Review Arabic reported.

The transformation is being adopted and spearheaded by institutions such as Al-Nobala Private Schools, which introduced the Kingdom’s first national “learning outcomes framework,” aimed at preparing a generation of leaders and innovators for an AI-driven future, the report said.

Al-Nobala has leveraged international expertise to localize advanced learning methodologies.

The Riyadh-based school group developed a strategy that links every classroom activity to measurable student competencies, aiming to graduate learners equipped for the digital economy and real-world contexts. The school’s group approach combines traditional values with 21st-century skills such as critical thinking, communication, innovation and digital fluency.

According to the report, the shift addresses the growing gap between outdated models built for low-tech, resource-constrained environments and today’s dynamic world, where learners must navigate real-time information, virtual platforms, and smart technologies.

“This is not just about teaching content, it’s about creating impact,” the report noted, citing how Al-Nobala’s model prepares students to thrive in an AI-driven world while aligning with national priorities.

The report noted that Saudi Arabia’s Ministry of Education has paved the way for this shift by transitioning from a centralized controller to a strategic enabler, allowing schools such as Al-Nobala to tailor their curriculum to meet evolving market and societal needs. This is part of the long-term goal to place the Kingdom among the top 20 global education systems.

Al-Nobala’s work, the report stated, has succeeded in serving the broader national effort to link education outcomes directly to labor market demands, helping to fulfill the Vision 2030 pillar of building a vibrant society with a thriving economy driven by knowledge and innovation.

Last February, Yousef bin Abdullah Al-Benyan, Saudi Arabia’s minister of education, said that the Kingdom was making “an unprecedented investment in education,” with spending aligned to the needs of growth and development. He said that in 2025, education received the second-largest share of the state budget, totaling $53.5 billion.