GIB Capital wins three key awards

04/08/2015 08:27 AST

Manama: GIB Capital, the Saudi-based investment banking arm of Bahrain-based Gulf International Bank (GIB), has won three awards given by EMEA Finance magazine for key transactions last year.

GIB Capital won the Best IPO Deal in the Middle East award for acting as co-financial adviser and joint lead manager for Saudi-based National Commercial Bank’s $6 billion initial public offering, the largest IPO ever in the Middle East.

GIB Capital also won the Best Sovereign Bond award in the Middle East for its role as bookrunner and lead manager on the $1.25bn 30-year bond issued by Bahrain, as well as the Best Merger and Acquisition Deal for advising the shareholders of Saudi Arabia’s General Lighting Company on the sale of a 51 per cent stake to Royal Philips.

The awards follow the Best Local Investment Bank in Bahrain award that GIB Capital won for last year. “Initiating a public offering is a milestone in the lifecycle of a company, as it adds a new layer of responsibility through public investors and as such opens the company up to ongoing scrutiny and significantly enhanced governance standards,” GIB Capital chairman Abdullah Al Zamil said at the awards event.

“The GIB Capital team strives to help clients through the public offering process in line with best international practices, guiding them through the due diligence process while at the same time assisting them in setting themselves up for the challenges that come with being a publicly listed company,” he added.

GIB Capital acting chief executive Khalid Al Ghamdi said the firm has a unique insight into the process of taking clients through IPOs after managing public offerings of more than $12bn across a multitude of sectors in different regulatory jurisdictions within the GCC.

He said the experience enables it to understand the factors and circumstances surrounding clients and their decision to go public, and ultimately results in successful public offerings. “The NCB IPO, along with the overall activity levels GIB Capital has achieved over the past few years, have placed us at the top tier of the comparative league tables,” Mr Al Ghamdi added.

The EMEA Finance magazine specialises in covering financial and banking developments in Europe and the Middle East, and is directed at an executive level audience. The magazine offers analysis of corporate investments, retail banking services, as well as evolving banking practices. GIB is a pan-GCC universal bank owned by the six GCC countries, with Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund holding 97.2pc stake.

Gulf Daily News