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Hermes considering 4-6 M&A deals in the UAE

Hermes considering 4-6 M&A deals in the UAE
Photo Credit: Company Website
EFG Holding
HRHO
-2.49% 17.65 -0.45

By: Amr Adel

Dubai - Mubasher: The Co-Head of EFG Hermes investment banking, Mohamed Fahmi, said that his group is considering managing six to eight new investment operations in the UAE markets.

In a press event in the group’s headquarters in Dubai on Wednesday, Fahmi told reporters that the new operations include four to six mergers and acquisitions (M&A), as well as two initial public offerings (IPOs) between the fourth quarter of 2017 and the first quarter of 2018.

The M&A deals include on in the healthcare sector, pending final approvals to be announced soon, another one in consumer commodities, and one in the food sector, noting that they are no exiting procedures for the group from the Emirati market for the current time.

EFG Hermes is also planning an acquisition in the Egyptian industrial sector, in one of the biggest recent deals, after the completion of the sale of SNB, with another acquisition in the retail sector.

Fahmi also pointed to negotiations with a number of companies to be listed on the Egyptian Exchange (EGX), refusing to reveal more details.

He also believes that Nasdaq Dubai is fit for listing Real Estate Investment Trust Funds (REITs), adding that EFG Hermes has carried out two IPOSs for REITs in the UAE, namely the Emirates REIT and the ENBD REIT, as well as the dual-listing of Orascom Construction.

Mohamed Fahmi also stressed the interest of institutional investors in the Dubai International Financial Centre, as well as in Europe and the US, to take part in new IPOs in the UAE markets, which are currently non-existing.

Fahmi indicated that the Emirati banking sector stands out as the sector that is more likely to witness more M&A deals, which would raise its competitiveness, a step he believes will open new frontiers for expansions.