Sharia-compliant insurance companies Dar Al Takaful and National Takaful Company (Watania) completed another “condition precedent”, moving closer to their proposed merger that will create one of the Emirates’ largest Islamic insurance providers.
The transaction is in the final stages of obtaining regulatory approvals from the Central Bank of the UAE and the Securities and Commodities Authority and is on track for completion by the end of this month, the entities said in a joint statement on Friday.
Their 45-day policyholders’ notice period to provide feedback or object to the proposed merger has ended without any objections, the companies said.
We have the vision and knowhow to immediately start executing our ambitious plans to build a national and regional Takaful leader that is strongly committed to product innovation
Gautam Datta,
chief executive of Dar Al Takaful
In the share-swap deal, Watania shareholders will receive shares in Dar Al Takaful, which will be the entity that will continue to remain listed on the Dubai Financial Market.
Under the terms of the merger, Watania shareholders will receive 0.734375 Dar Al Takaful shares for every Watania share they own, valuing the merged company at Dh260 million ($70.8m).
“We have the vision and know-how to immediately start executing our ambitious plans to build a national and regional Takaful leader that is strongly committed to product innovation, service excellence, productivity and shareholder value creation,” said Gautam Datta, chief executive of Dar Al Takaful.
The UAE insurance market is expected to grow at a compound annual rate of 4.1 per cent between 2021 and 2026, Alpen Capital said in a February report.
“Through the market consolidation, Dar Al Takaful and Watania aim to consolidate the highly fragmented takaful industry,” Mr Datta said.
“The insurance industry is on a growth trajectory as the region emerges into a new era following the worst impacts of the [Covid-19] pandemic.
“We are building a strong, scalable and adaptable business model that is based on best practices and underpinned by clear values that will be able to meet the changing demands of customers and the overall market.”
As part of the merger’s legal process, trading in Watania shares on the Abu Dhabi Securities Exchange ceased as of the closing of the trading session on June 15 until the official delisting of the company from the bourse.
Watania acquired a 4.9 per cent stake in Dar Al Takaful in May 2020 for Dh5.88m. The move was aimed at generating investment income by way of capital appreciation and dividends in the future, the company said at the time.
The same year, Dar Al Takaful bought competitor Noor Takaful for Dh215m in cash, acquiring its Noor Takaful General and Noor Takaful Family units.
Global state-owned investor ranking by size
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Sholto Byrnes on Myanmar politics
COMPANY PROFILE
Name: Kumulus Water
Started: 2021
Founders: Iheb Triki and Mohamed Ali Abid
Based: Tunisia
Sector: Water technology
Number of staff: 22
Investment raised: $4 million
The Bio
Favourite vegetable: “I really like the taste of the beetroot, the potatoes and the eggplant we are producing.”
Holiday destination: “I like Paris very much, it’s a city very close to my heart.”
Book: “Das Kapital, by Karl Marx. I am not a communist, but there are a lot of lessons for the capitalist system, if you let it get out of control, and humanity.”
Musician: “I like very much Fairuz, the Lebanese singer, and the other is Umm Kulthum. Fairuz is for listening to in the morning, Umm Kulthum for the night.”
The specs
Engine: Four electric motors, one at each wheel
Power: 579hp
Torque: 859Nm
Transmission: Single-speed automatic
Price: From Dh825,900
On sale: Now
Major honours
ARSENAL
BARCELONA
- La Liga - 2013
- Copa del Rey - 2012
- Fifa Club World Cup - 2011
CHELSEA
- Premier League - 2015, 2017
- FA Cup - 2018
- League Cup - 2015
SPAIN
- World Cup - 2010
- European Championship - 2008, 2012
The specs: 2018 Nissan Patrol Nismo
Price: base / as tested: Dh382,000
Engine: 5.6-litre V8
Gearbox: Seven-speed automatic
Power: 428hp @ 5,800rpm
Torque: 560Nm @ 3,600rpm
Fuel economy, combined: 12.7L / 100km
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Ferrari 12Cilindri specs
Engine: naturally aspirated 6.5-liter V12
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Total eligible population
About 57.5 million people
51.1 million received a jab
6.4 million have not
Where are the unvaccinated?
England 11%
Scotland 9%
Wales 10%
Northern Ireland 14%
Sting & Shaggy
44/876
(Interscope)
The%20specs
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The biog
Family: He is the youngest of five brothers, of whom two are dentists.
Celebrities he worked on: Fabio Canavaro, Lojain Omran, RedOne, Saber Al Rabai.
Where he works: Liberty Dental Clinic
Kathryn Hawkes of House of Hawkes on being a good guest (because we’ve all had bad ones)
- Arrive with a thank you gift, or make sure you have one for your host by the time you leave.
- Offer to buy groceries, cook them a meal or take your hosts out for dinner.
- Help out around the house.
- Entertain yourself so that your hosts don’t feel that they constantly need to.
- Leave no trace of your stay – if you’ve borrowed a book, return it to where you found it.
- Offer to strip the bed before you go.
