IslamicFinance.de

Middle Eastern investment banking fees reached US$120.3 million during the first quarter of 2014, down 17% from the previous quarter and a 2% decline compared to the first quarter of 2013. Fees from completed M&A transactions totaled US$46.4 million, up 19% from the same period in 2013, and accounting for 39% of this year’s overall Middle Eastern fee pool. Equity capital markets underwriting fees totaled US$39.6 million, more than twice the amount registered during the first quarter of 2013 (US$17.4 million) and marking the best annual start for ECM fees in the Middle East since 2008. Fees from debt capital markets underwriting declined 47% year-on-year to US$17.4 million, while syndicated lending fees fell 49% to US$16.9 million.