Shareholders of Blom Bank Egypt agree to sell to Bahrain’s Bank ABC

Shareholders representing about 99.5 percent of the shares of Blom Bank Egypt have accepted the mandatory tender offer (MTO) to sell their stakes to Bahrain’s Arab Banking Corporation (Bank ABC), the Egyptian bourse (EGX) announced on Monday.

Bank ABC acquired 298.62 million of Blom Bank Egypt’s 300 million shares for $424.05 million, the EGX statement read.

The Bahraini lender had offered to take over the local branch of the Lebanese lender Blom Bank for 22.33 Egyptian pounds ($1.42) per share, valuing the business at $427 million.

The offer was announced in January and later approved by Egypt’s market regulator Financial Regulatory Authority (FRA) on July 18.

Bank ABC chief executive Khaled Kawan said at the time that the acquisition of Blom Bank Egypt would give the Bahrain Bank “a significantly enhanced platform for future growth in one of the most attractive markets in the region.”

The bank already had a presence in Egypt through its subsidiary Bank ABC Egypt, but it will now add Blom’s 41 locations to its 27-branch network.

The acquisition deal includes Blom Bank Egypt’s physical and non-physical assets as well as customer accounts.

HSBC Bank Middle East acted as the financial adviser to Bank ABC, while Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer and Zulficar & Partners were legal advisers.

CI Capital acted as the financial advisor to Blom Bank Lebanon, while Baker McKenzie was its legal counsel on the deal.