The board of Al Izz Islamic Bank, a Muscat listed Sharia-compliant lender, approved a share swap ratio for its merger with the Oman Arab Bank, paving the way for the latest banking merger deal in the Gulf.
The board recommended the swap ratio that gives OAB about 81 per cent control of the merged entity to its shareholders, the lender said in a bourse filing to the Muscat Securities Market. Ominvest, an investment holding firm which controls unlisted OAB, said the actual swap ratio will be based on the net asset value as per the audited financial statements for the year ended December 31, 2019.
“Appropriate adjustments will be made to movements in both banks' financials between December 31, 2019 and the actual transaction date,” it said in a statement to the bourse on Sunday. The transaction remains subject to shareholder and regulatory approvals.
"We believe that OAB has priced [Alizz] close to its fair value / net book value," Ayisha Zia, a research analyst at Muscat-based U Capital said in a research note.
If the two banks decide to go ahead with the merger, the combined entity will be the third-largest Islamic banking services provider in Oman, with a total asset base of 3.18 billion Omani rials (Dh30.5bn) and an Islamic asset base of 866 million rials.
This compares to the largest Islamic banking window of Bank Muscat, which had total assets of 1.44bn rials at the end of September 2019 and Bank Nizwa's 967.4m rials, according to the U Capital note.
The two Muscat-based lenders said in May last year they were exploring the possibility of a strategic collaboration that could lead to an eventual merger of the two entities. A preliminary agreement pledging to continue merger talks was signed last year, when legal and financial advisers were appointed to conduct due diligence.
The proposed deal would be credit-positive for OAB and provide it with a larger Islamic franchise and asset base, “allowing it to improve its interest income and deposit-gathering ability”, Moody Investors Service said in an October 2018 report. It would also help the bank capitalise on the fast-growing Islamic banking segment in Oman, it added.
The deal, if successful, will be a continuation of the consolidation trend underway in the banking sector across the GCC. Bank mergers in the region have picked up pace in recent years as lenders combine their balance sheets to gain scale and drive efficiencies to face tough market conditions against a weaker global economic backdrop.
Dubai Islamic Bank’s takeover of its smaller rival, Noor Bank, is the latest deal nearing completion. DIB, the UAE's biggest Sharia-compliant lender, received shareholder approval earlier this month for the acquisition through a capital increase and share swap to create a banking entity with assets of more than Dh275 billion.
This follows the merger of National Bank of Abu Dhabi and First Gulf Bank to create First Abu Dhabi Bank and a three-way tie-up between Abu Dhabi Commercial Bank, Union National Bank and Islamic lender Al Hilal Bank last year.
Kuwait Finance House is also due to host a shareholders' meeting on Monday to vote on the terms of its acquisition of its smaller Bahraini counterpart to create a combined Islamic banking entity with more than $96.7bn in assets.
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Director: Shazia Iqbal
Starring: Siddhant Chaturvedi, Triptii Dimri
Rating: 1/5
SPECS
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HOW DO SIM CARD SCAMS WORK?
Sim swap frauds are a form of identity theft.
They involve criminals conning mobile phone operators into issuing them with replacement Sim cards, often by claiming their phone has been lost or stolen
They use the victim's personal details - obtained through criminal methods - to convince such companies of their identity.
The criminal can then access any online service that requires security codes to be sent to a user's mobile phone, such as banking services.
PRO BASH
Thursday’s fixtures
6pm: Hyderabad Nawabs v Pakhtoon Warriors
10pm: Lahore Sikandars v Pakhtoon Blasters
Teams
Chennai Knights, Lahore Sikandars, Pakhtoon Blasters, Abu Dhabi Stars, Abu Dhabi Dragons, Pakhtoon Warriors and Hyderabad Nawabs.
Squad rules
All teams consist of 15-player squads that include those contracted in the diamond (3), platinum (2) and gold (2) categories, plus eight free to sign team members.
Tournament rules
The matches are of 25 over-a-side with an 8-over power play in which only two fielders allowed outside the 30-yard circle. Teams play in a single round robin league followed by the semi-finals and final. The league toppers will feature in the semi-final eliminator.
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Generation Start-up: Awok company profile
Started: 2013
Founder: Ulugbek Yuldashev
Sector: e-commerce
Size: 600 plus
Stage: still in talks with VCs
Principal Investors: self-financed by founder
ACL Elite (West) - fixtures
Monday, Sept 30
Al Sadd v Esteghlal (8pm)
Persepolis v Pakhtakor (8pm)
Al Wasl v Al Ahli (8pm)
Al Nassr v Al Rayyan (10pm)
Tuesday, Oct 1
Al Hilal v Al Shorta (10pm)
Al Gharafa v Al Ain (10pm)
SPECS
Mini John Cooper Works Clubman and Mini John Cooper Works Countryman
Engine: two-litre 4-cylinder turbo
Transmission: nine-speed automatic
Power: 306hp
Torque: 450Nm
Price: JCW Clubman, Dh220,500; JCW Countryman, Dh225,500
Global state-owned investor ranking by size
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Japan
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Norway
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Canada
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Singapore
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Specs
Engine: 51.5kW electric motor
Range: 400km
Power: 134bhp
Torque: 175Nm
Price: From Dh98,800
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The Florida Project
Director: Sean Baker
Starring: Bria Vinaite, Brooklynn Prince, Willem Dafoe
Four stars
What can victims do?
Always use only regulated platforms
Stop all transactions and communication on suspicion
Save all evidence (screenshots, chat logs, transaction IDs)
Report to local authorities
Warn others to prevent further harm
Courtesy: Crystal Intelligence
BIGGEST CYBER SECURITY INCIDENTS IN RECENT TIMES
SolarWinds supply chain attack: Came to light in December 2020 but had taken root for several months, compromising major tech companies, governments and its entities
Microsoft Exchange server exploitation: March 2021; attackers used a vulnerability to steal emails
Kaseya attack: July 2021; ransomware hit perpetrated REvil, resulting in severe downtime for more than 1,000 companies
Log4j breach: December 2021; attackers exploited the Java-written code to inflitrate businesses and governments
Zayed Sustainability Prize
More from Neighbourhood Watch:
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Dubai works towards better air quality by 2021
Dubai is on a mission to record good air quality for 90 per cent of the year – up from 86 per cent annually today – by 2021.
The municipality plans to have seven mobile air-monitoring stations by 2020 to capture more accurate data in hourly and daily trends of pollution.
These will be on the Palm Jumeirah, Al Qusais, Muhaisnah, Rashidiyah, Al Wasl, Al Quoz and Dubai Investment Park.
“It will allow real-time responding for emergency cases,” said Khaldoon Al Daraji, first environment safety officer at the municipality.
“We’re in a good position except for the cases that are out of our hands, such as sandstorms.
“Sandstorms are our main concern because the UAE is just a receiver.
“The hotspots are Iran, Saudi Arabia and southern Iraq, but we’re working hard with the region to reduce the cycle of sandstorm generation.”
Mr Al Daraji said monitoring as it stood covered 47 per cent of Dubai.
There are 12 fixed stations in the emirate, but Dubai also receives information from monitors belonging to other entities.
“There are 25 stations in total,” Mr Al Daraji said.
“We added new technology and equipment used for the first time for the detection of heavy metals.
“A hundred parameters can be detected but we want to expand it to make sure that the data captured can allow a baseline study in some areas to ensure they are well positioned.”
Killing of Qassem Suleimani
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
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
