Legal woes propel Ahli United Bank to sell stake in Ahli Bank of Qatar (By IFN)

Legal woes propel Ahli United Bank to sell stake in Ahli Bank of Qatar

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GLOBAL: Legal woes have been cited as the factor for Ahli United Bank (AUB)’s decision to sell its 29.4% stake in Ahli Bank of Qatar to a non-profit body. The sale, worth US$615.9 million, was sold to the Qatar Foundation; which specializes in research and studies in education, science and community development, at QAR60 (US$16.36) per share at a profit of US$212.9 million. In a statement to the press, the company stressed that the legal issues are isolated to the deal, and will not affect AUB’s other activities including investments and regional expansion plans. The statement read: “The decision to sell our stake in ABQ was triggered by our inability due to legal factors to maintain our minority shareholding above the minimum levels required for ABQ to qualify as a strategic core investment with associated management and reputational exposure as per the AUB Group Investments Policy. This sale does not represent a reversal of our regional growth by investment and acquisition strategy and is solely driven by the specific legal constraints linked to this investment.” Islamic Finance news first predicted in November 2012 that the stake would be sold to another Qatar government-linked entity, the Qatar Investment Authority, in line with the Qatari government’s increasing participation in the country’s banking system.