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A strategic partnership agreement had been signed, between Kuwait Finance House (KFH) and Entrepreneur Magazine. (KFH) asumes that they will sponsor the Entrepreneur platform for Kuwait with “Entrepreneur Middle East” which specializes in business entrepreneurship and young people’s initiatives.

The boards of Kuwait Finance House and Ahli United Bank agreed on a share swap ratio. AUB said its board approved a final exchange ratio between the two lenders of one KFH share for every 2.325581 AUB shares. A final decision on the deal is subject to approval from shareholders of both banks, central banks and other authorities in Kuwait and Bahrain. The approved ratio is the same as the one announced in January, when the lenders hired HSBC and Credit Suisse as advisers to carry out financial and legal due diligence of each other’s accounts. According to equity analysts Mohamad Al Hajj and Elena Sanchez-Cabezudo, this merger would increase KFH’s expected weight within MSCI Emerging Market Index by 8 basis points and increase expected flows in May 2020 by $370 million. KFH has tried to acquire AUB in the past, but talks stalled over a difference in valuation.

The World’s oldest Islamic bank has strengthened its leadership to provide sharia-compliant products and services to an even broader market. Simpler, better, faster. These three key words form the cornerstone of a strategy that is seen to propel Kuwait Finance House Malaysia from its present level to a stronger position in the region. Thanks to fundamental adjustments that demonstrate efforts of Kuwait Finance House to grow its Malaysian subsidiary, the outlook for KFH Malaysia has never been better. “After making changes to the management structure in Kuwait, we came to bring the Malaysia arm in line with the group and to make sure that we drive forward to become the dominant player in Southeast Asia,” CEO David Power said.
Groomed as the regional hub for KFH in the Far East, KFH Malaysia had 18 vacant management positions when Power took over. Within a short period, he took steps to make sure that the bank had the right people on board who could assess the problems and come up with short-, medium- and long-term solutions.

There are several rumors about possible mergers of the smaller Islamic banks in the GCC region. According to UCapital, the relatively small size of Islamic banks is one of the compelling reasons for them to consider consolidation. However there is no compelling reason for a big number of regional banks to rush into merger deals. Banks across the region are facing pressure on profitability and tighter liquidity. The UAE, Bahrain and Oman would benefit from consolidation as many banks in these countries lack sufficient scale. A proposed merger of Kuwait Finance House and Ahli United Bank is expected to result in second biggest Islamic Bank in the GCC. Merger of Qatari banks Masraf Al Rayan, Barwa Bank and International Bank of Qatar which was announced last year is progressing and is expected to complete by end of the year.

The merger of National Bank of Abu Dhabi (NBAD) and First Gulf Bank (FGB) in the UAE last year had triggered a number of unconfirmed reports of bank mergers across the GCC. However, most of these reports were denied by bank managements. While bankers and analysts say the time is ripe for more bank mergers, they expect more merger deals to happen in the Islamic banking and Takaful industry. A proposed merger of Kuwait Finance House and Ahli United Bank is expected to result in second biggest Islamic Bank in the GCC after Al Rajhi Bank. The merger of Qatari banks Masraf Al Rayan, Barwa Bank and International Bank of Qatar is progressing and is expected to complete by end of the year. Some countries have only a small number of local banks, which limits competition. This means that profitability has remained solid and is therefore less likely to be a driver for M&A. Another stumbling block is the ownership structure of GCC banks, well established local private shareholders often control sizeable stakes and foreign banks only hold minority stakes.

Kuwait Finance House is in talks to buy Bahrain’s Ahli United Bank in a deal that would create one of the Middle East’s largest Islamic lenders with $85 billion of assets. However, there is no guarantee that a deal will take place and final agreements haven’t been reached yet. Lower oil prices are forcing Gulf lenders to consolidate for scale. Abu Dhabi lenders National Bank of Abu Dhabi and First Gulf Bank recently merged to create a regional powerhouse with $175 billion of assets. Qatar’s Masraf Al Rayan is planning to combine with unlisted Barwa Bank and International Bank of Qatar to create the country’s largest Islamic lender. Ahli United in Bahrain declined to comment. KFH shares have lost 0.6% so far this year, giving the lender a market value of $9.3 billion. Ahli United shares have jumped 16% so far this year, giving it a $5.57 billion market capitalization.

Kuwait Finance House denies any decision to merge with Ahli United Bank. Kuwait Finance House is currently studying many other strategic alternatives to enlarge its profitability and marketshare among local and regional banks.

The important role of the Republic of Turkey in the global Islamic finance industry as well as its distinct standing both at the official and popular levels, the steady growth both of Islamic banks and financial institutions operating there, in addition to the parallel evolution of its regulatory and supervisory framework, the AAOIFI has been keen to strengthen professional and technical ties with this country. This was translated into an official visit by AAOIFI to a number of banking regulatory and supervisory bodies as well as a number of Islamic banks and financial institutions, professional entities and academic institutions.

Kuwait Finance House (KFH) has received an offer from investors to buy its stake in affiliate Aref Investment Group, the country's biggest Islamic lender said in a bourse statement on Monday. Aref is a diversified investment firm which is 53 percent owned by KFH and has share capital of $400 million, according to information on the companies' websites. This offer is currently under study and no decision has been taken as yet, the statement said. KFH will disclose this offer in the event that they have reached and signed a preliminary agreement, and cannot currently determine any financial impact on its statements in the absence of an agreement as yet.

Kuwait Finance House (KFH) will set up a sharia-compliant asset management unit under its Turkish bank branch, the lender said on Monday. Kuwait Finance House Turk will establish five sharia-compliant investment funds and offer other investment services under KT Portfoy, the new unit, KFH said in a bourse statement. The establishment of the new firm is conditional on approval from Turkey's capital market authority. KFH's chief executive in January said it would issue Islamic bonds to boost capital reserves at its subsidiary bank in Turkey, even as it looks to restructure its global assets.

Kuwait Finance House (KFH) is studying the issuance of Islamic bonds that would boost its capital reserves. The offering still requires necessary approvals, its chief executive Mazen al-Nahedh said. The firm could issue capital bonds that either enhance its core Tier 1 capital or its supplementary Tier 2 capital. Besides sukuk plans for the parent company, KFH is also planning to issue Tier 2-enhancing sukuk this year for its Turkish subsidiary. The firm expects the issue will happen this year to support its capital situation so it can grow, he added.

Vice Chairman at Kuwait Finance House (KFH), Abdulaziz Yaqoub Al-Nafisi stressed the importance of international investment and creating further integration in KFH-Group banks in the framework of the coordination that targets boosting development according to a unified vision that prioritizes development and recognizes the value of public-private partnerships and international investment, yet contributes in diversifying non-oil sectors to boost the economy. On the sideline of his participation in the inauguration ceremony of Marassi Al Bahrain project, Al-Nafisi praised the project that was a joint effort between the real estate investment and development company, Eagle Hills, in partnership with Diyar Al Muharraq. He went on to say that the project will provide steady flow of income for investors and will comprise a major destination for tourists in Bahrain.

Turkish Islamic bank Kuveyt Turk has mandated six institutions for a sukuk with a value of up to $400 million with a maturity of 10 years, it said in a statement to the Istanbul stock exchange late on Thursday.
Kuveyt Turk Participation Bank, which is 62 percent owned by Kuwait Finance House, said it had mandated KFH Capital, Dubai Islamic Bank, HSBC, Noor Bank, QInvest and Emirates NBD as joint lead managers. Sources familiar with the matter told Reuters in September that seven banks had been picked to arrange a potential deal.

Kuwait Finance House (KFH) participated as a primary dealer for short-term Sukuk issued by the International Islamic Liquidity Management IILM worth $1.85 billion. KFH is considered as the most active dealer in the market in terms of acquisition and volume traded. AbdulWahab Al-Roshoud, Acting Chief Treasury Officer at KFH, said that the average trading of IILM's previous three issuances in the secondary market surpassed 50 per cent of their volume which is considered high in comparison with the rest of Sukuk, indicating that this reflects the market’s strength and its contributions in increasing the liquidity. KFH forecasts that several local and global banks will participate in IILM’s upcoming Sukuk.

Qatar National Bank (QNB) has halted preliminary talks with Kuwait Finance House (KFH) to buy its Malaysian unit, the Gulf Arab region's largest bank said. An agreement has not been reached. Earlier, KFH's chief executive Mazin al-Nahedh had said the bank had ruled out a sale or merger for its Malaysian unit, adding the largest Islamic bank in the Gulf Arab state will begin restructuring the unit with immediate effect. The disclosure from KFH comes after a source familiar with the matter said last week that QNB had bid to buy the unit, with the Qatari lender later acknowledging it was in early talks about an acquisition.

Kuwait Finance House (KFH) has ruled out a sale or merger for its Malaysian unit, its chief executive said on Tuesday. Mazin al-Nahedh added the lender, the largest Islamic bank in the Gulf Arab state, will begin restructuring the unit with immediate effect. The disclosure from KFH comes after a source familiar with the matter said last week that Qatar National Bank had bid to buy the unit, with the Qatari lender later acknowledging it was in early talks about an acquisition.

Kuwait Finance House will decide the fate of its Malaysian business by the end of this month, a spokesman said on Tuesday, after it had been reported that Qatar National Bank had bid to buy the unit. The sale ist part of of a broader restructuring of its operations. A spokesman for KFH said it was looking at several options whether to restructure, sell or merge its Malaysian business and that the decision will be concluded by the end of this month. A source familiar with the matter had said earlier that QNB had submitted a bid to purchase the Malaysian unit. The source declined to provide further details, and whether there were other bidders involved.

Qatar National Bank is among suitors that submitted final bids for Kuwait Finance House’s Malaysian operations. KFH is evaluating offers from Qatar National Bank and at least one other party. It may not proceed with the sale unless it can agree on a high enough price. State-controlled Qatar National Bank has been expanding overseas to reduce its reliance on its home market. It has spent US$3 billion on acquisitions since 2012. Kuwait Finance House’s Malaysian unit had a book value of 1.7 billion ringgit (US$395 million) and total assets of 10.5 billion ringgit at the end of December. Offers for the business were affected by the difficult economic environment in the country.

"Global Finance" has named Kuwait finance House ( KFH ) the safest Islamic Financial institution in Kuwait, and the third in the GCC for the year 2015. The bank is ranked as one of the top two among all Kuwaiti banks, be it Islamic or conventional. Also, Global Finance announced the 50 safest banks in emerging markets 2015 where KFH was ranked in 28th place. Banks were selected through an evaluation of long-term foreign currency ratings, credit ratings, businesses, financial indicators and total assets. Global Finance study encompassed more than 500 largest banks in Asia, the GCC and MENA. KFH Chief Executive Officer Mazin Al-Nahedh said the ranking confirms KFH 's robust financial position, sound pursued procedures in addition to the professional and legislative commitment.

Kuwait Finance House plans to shed its stake in education investment company Nafais Holding. KFH is currently restructuring its activities, which could also include a sale of assets such as its Malaysian business. This is ahead of planned divestments by its largest shareholder, the Kuwait Investment Authority. The Islamic bank is the second-largest shareholder in Nafais with a 19.01 percent stake. Nafais, involved in education, healthcare, financing and investment, has a market capitalisation of around $206 million, which would value the bank's stake at close to $40 million. The Islamic bank only acquired the Nafais stake in March 2014 from Aref Group Company.