DOHA: Commercialbank of Qatar (Cb) has agreed to acquire a 70.84 percent shareholding in Alternatifbank AS in Turkey (“ABank”) from Anadolu Endustri Holding AS (“Anadolu”) for two times the book value at 30 June 2013; the book value of ABank at 31 December 2012 was TL585m ($328m).
The acquisition remains subject to relevant regulatory approval and is expected to be completed in the second half of this year. As part of the transaction, Cb will also launch a public tender offer to acquire the 4.16 percent of ABank’s shares held in the public domain.
Abdullah bin Khalifa Al Attiyah, Chairman of Cb said: “We are delighted to have agreed to the terms of the acquisition for a majority stake in ABank. Qatar and Turkey continue to strengthen their relationship which will benefit the new partnership between Commercialbank and ABank enabling both banks to continue to grow and thrive.”
Hussain Al Fardan, Cb’s Managing Director, added: “ABank operates in a dynamic economy with good long-term growth prospects, in a country that is strategically and culturally aligned, we believe this represents the logical next step in the execution of our international expansion strategy.”
Cb’s expansion strategy has focused, to date, on pan-GCC opportunities. The bank successfully acquired minority stakes in National Bank of Oman (34.9 percent) in 2005 and United Arab Bank (40 percent) in the UAE in 2008 and has forged successful alliances with these banks, developing their financial and operational efficiency and growing them in step with the economies they serve.
Andrew Stevens, Cb’s Group Chief Executive Officer, said: “ABank is a model of efficiency and good management and we look forward to working alongside our new partners.”
Tuncay Ozilhan, Chairman of Anadolu and Alternatifbank commented: “We are happy to have agreed this partnership with Commercialbank and we are looking forward to working together to advance the strategy of ABank as a leading and healthy bank in the growing Turkish financial sector.” The Peninsula
