DUBAI: A Dubai state holding firm has acquired a 24.62 percent stake in EFG-Hermes, a move which provides further evidence of the booming Gulf emirate s desire to diversify its portfolio of foreign investments.
Dubai Holding said in a statement on Monday that its subsidiary, Dubai Financial Group, had bought two companies belonging to Dubai-based private equity firm Abraaj Capital for around $1.1 billion.
The Abraaj Capital companies, Abraaj Egypt Ltd and Abraaj SPV 26 Ltd, collectively own a 24.62 percent stake in Cairo-based EFG-Hermes.
The investment bank is listed in London and Cairo and has a market capitalization of over $4 billion, the statement said.
Through this investment, Dubai has achieved yet another distinctive success in driving its regional footprint in the banking industry, Dubai Holding Chairman Mohammad Al-Gergawi said in the statement.
Dubai, a member of the United Arab Emirates federation, is aggressively expanding its global holdings.
Government-controlled or backed firms and investment funds have chased strategic targets such as European aerospace giant EADS, owner of Airbus, in which Dubai International Capital bought a 3.12-percent stake, and brand names such as the upscale Barneys New York retail chain, which Istithmar, another Dubai investment arm, wrested from a rival Japanese bidder.
