National Bank of
Bahrain National Bank of Bahrain Mandated to Lead and Arrange Syndication
Manama, Kingdom of Bahrain - 10 August 2008 - Bahrain Mumtalakat Holding Company Bahrain Mumtalakat Holding Company B.S.C (c), the investment company for Bahrain, announced today that it has launched a $500 million loan facility, in its first debt capital financing. National Bank of Bahrain National Bank of Bahrain (" NBB NBB ") has been mandated by Mumtalakat Mumtalakat to lead and arrange the syndicated loan facility.
Under the terms of the agreement, NBB NBB has provided to supply a fully underwritten facility to Mumtalakat Mumtalakat in its role as Lead Manager and Arranger, and will syndicate the transaction to a group of local and regional financial institutions: the facility covers a five year term.
Talal Al Zain, Chief Executive of Mumtalakat Mumtalakat , said, "Our overall goal is to move Mumtalakat Mumtalakat to a position where it is the global investor on behalf of Bahrain. To achieve this we have a very clear investment objective which is to create a balanced portfolio of national, regional and global investments to achieve high returns and spread risk through geographic and industrial diversification. In creating our portfolio we intend to make a number of strategic acquisitions in the future to provide greater geographic and sectoral balance to our current holdings. By undertaking our first debt facility, Mumtalakat Mumtalakat will be well placed to capture value creating acquisition opportunities when they arise.
"We're pleased to have the support of NBB NBB , the leading Bahraini commercial bank, in managing the arrangement of the syndication. We are confident that their professionalism and market knowledge will ensure a successful closing of the facility," he concluded.
Abdul Razak Hassan Al Qassim, CEO of NBB NBB , ed, " NBB NBB 's corporate strategy has always been to support the economic development of Bahrain. That is why we are delighted to have been mandated by Mumtalakat Mumtalakat , the global investor for Bahrain's future, to lead and arrange its first debt facility. Today's announcement demonstrates the capabilities of NBB NBB to service its clients' needs not only locally but across the region. We are confident of a positive response from investors to the facility."
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About National Bank of Bahrain National Bank of Bahrain National Bank of Bahrain was established in 1957 as the first indigenous bank in Bahrain. A nation-wide network of 25 branches, 45 ATMs and over 2,500 Point of Sale terminals makes NBB NBB the leading provider of commercial and retail banking services in Bahrain. NBB NBB had total assets of BD 1,915 million as of June 2008 and declared net profits of BD26 million for the six month period ended 30 Jun 2008, an increase of 13.5% over the same period last year.
NBB NBB is rated A2 (Long Term), Prime-1 (Short Term) by Moody's and A (Long Term), F1 (Short Term) by Fitch. Capital Intelligence has recently upgraded NBB NBB 's credit ratings to A (Long Term) and A-1 (Short Term) on a par with the country ceiling set for Bahrain.
For more information on NBB NBB please go to www.nbbonline.com
About Mumtalakat Mumtalakat Mumtalakat is the investment company for Bahrain, and was established as an independent holding company for the Government of Bahrain's non-oil and gas assets. With 38 commercial enterprises within its $10 billion portfolio, Mumtalakat Mumtalakat 's investment strategy seeks to enter into partnerships with local, regional and global institutions targeting opportunities for long term, sustainable returns.
For more information on Mumtalakat Mumtalakat please go to www.bmhc.bh
Media Enquiries for Mumtalakat Mumtalakat : FD Jon Earl +973 17537072 jon.earl@fd.com Jon Hobday +971 (0) 4 332 8832 john.hobday@fd.com Edward Bridges +44 (0)20 7831 3113 edward.bridges@fd.com
© Press Release 2008 & omar 1.1:zy
