Kuwait’s KSCP mulls buying stake in Saudi Investment Bank

By Aya Anwar On Jun 25, 2024

Kuwait Finance House KSCP is considering purchasing a significant stake in Saudi Investment Bank as deal activity intensifies in the Middle East, Bloomberg reported citing sources familiar with the situation.

The Kuwaiti lender is evaluating the potential investment to strengthen its presence in the region, said the sources.

Shares of Saudi Investment Bank have shown minimal movement in Riyadh trading this year, maintaining a market value of approximately $4.3 billion as of yesterday.

On Tuesday, shares surged more than 4.9 per cent at the opening of trading on Saudi’s Tadawul stock exchange, marking the largest increase since 2022. Trading in Kuwait Finance House was halted pending further announcements, as stated by Boursa Kuwait.

Banking consolidation has accelerated across the Middle East as financial institutions seek greater scale to enhance competitiveness. One of the notable recent transactions involving KFH was its agreement in 2022 to acquire Bahrain’s Ahli United Bank after nearly four years of negotiations.

Discussions regarding the potential stake acquisition are ongoing, with no assurance of reaching a final agreement, according to the sources. Representatives for KFH and Saudi Investment Bank did not respond to requests for comment.

Previously, Saudi Investment Bank had JPMorgan Chase & Co. as one of its largest shareholders until the US bank divested its stake in 2018.

Attribution: Bloomberg.