Capivest, Elaf and Capital Management to Vote on Merger in June

Bahrain’s Capivest BSC, Elaf Bank BSC and Capital Management House BSC will hold shareholder meetings this month to vote on a merger of the three Islamic financial institutions, the transaction adviser said.

The merger, expected to be completed in the second half of 2012, will create an institution with a shareholders’ equity of almost $350 million and assets of more than $400 million, Kuwait Finance House (KFIN) Bahrain BSC said in an e-mailed statement today. The new company will have a “more competitive” edge, the statement said.

Bahrain is home to the largest number of Islamic banks in the Persian Gulf and the only nation in the six-member Gulf Cooperation Council to issue domestic Islamic bills maturing in less than a year, according to central bank data. The Accounting & Auditing Organization for Islamic Financial Institutions, a standard-setting body, is also based in the country.

Bahrain Islamic Bank (BISB), the second-biggest Shariah-compliant lender in the nation, in February ended talks with Al Salam Bank BSC (SALAM) for a possible merger that would have created a lender with a market value of $400 million. Al Salam completed legal requirements for its merger with Bahrain Saudi Bank BSC on April 25, according to the statement on the nation’s bourse June 10.

To contact the reporter on this story: Dana El Baltaji in Dubai at delbaltaji@bloomberg.net

To contact the editor responsible for this story: Claudia Maedler at cmaedler@bloomberg.net