EBI and NBD in surprise merger with AED 165 bn assets - R 06 Mar 2007
Main headline of the Gulf News this morning. This Reuters report says news first appeared on WAM yesterday, but I don't see it online
Market reaction was muted yesterday (seems unlikely the market was completely unaware). EBI shares have rarely traded in the past month (as usual) and price has stagnated. NBD shares trade infrequently but last two weeks of January 2007 saw increased volumes and there was a decent price rise in the first week of February 2007. But no significant volumes traded yesterday, although the price rose slightly (by 0.5%) while almost everything else listed on DFM fell.
Surprise Dubai merger to create largest UAE bank
By Daliah Merzaban
Dubai - Emirates Bank International (EBI) and National Bank of Dubai (NBD) have agreed a surprise merger to create the largest United Arab Emirates lender, sources at the two banks said on Tuesday.
The new entity would have a market value of $12.03 billion at Tuesday's closing prices and control 165 billion dirhams ($44.96 billion) in assets, overtaking the country's largest lender, National Bank of Abu Dhabi (NBAD), on both counts.
Neither bank had said it was in talks on a merger and the stock exchange said it was unaware of the deal, first announced by the official news agency WAM.
Four sources confirmed the WAM report which said the deal was agreed with the blessing of the emirate's ruler, Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid al-Maktoum "at the wish of the banks to create a strong banking body."
"It appears to be a decision from the ruler," one of the sources said.
Spokesmen for both banks and for the United Arab Emirates central bank declined comment. Dubai is part of the UAE, an oil exporting federation of seven emirates.
Essa Kazim, chief executive of the Dubai stock exchange, said he was unaware of the deal. The Dubai government owns around 14 percent of National Bank of Dubai, the emirate's fourth largest lender by market value, and about 77 percent of Emirates Bank, the biggest lender in Dubai.
The merger is likely to be part of efforts to prepare the banking sector for competition, with the UAE negotiating trade deals with the United States and the European Union, said Wadah al-Taha, head of strategy at Emaar Financial Services.
"The UAE needs to create bigger bodies as they open to international trade. Banks are currently too small to face the competition," he said.
Essa Kazim, the DFM director, was interviewed on Dubai Eye radio this morning. He said a decision would be made about trading of shares in EBI and DFM today, and I think he said a few minutes later that trading would be suspended for today. _________________ UAE IPO list | posting guidelines
(EBI) (NBD) 07/03/2007 DFM: Trading will suspended on National Bank of Dubai & Emirates Bank shares until detailed clarification in regards to merging the two entities.
Good oh. That's useful. The new largest bank in the UAE ignores DFM requests to provide disclosures in Arabic and English ...
... then again, that shouldn't be such a surprise. They ignored stockmarket requirements for providing information relevant to shareholders in a timely fashion also.
DFM 07 March 2007 (Arabic only):
(EBI) 03/07/2007 Emirates Bank: A statement by chairmen of EBI & NBD regarding the merge of the two banks.
And NBD will protect shareholders' interests? Ha ha ha ha.
I'm curious to know why this merger was revealed in the press first, and caught both Dubai Financial Market and ESCA by surprise. I thought it was normal that the market regulator is notified first or at the same time. Or have I got that wrong ?
Khaleej Times 08 March 2007:
NBD vows to protect shareholders' interest
BY ISSAC JOHN (Chief Business Reporter)
DUBAI — As the Dubai Financial Market yesterday stopped trading of shares in the two local banks following their merger move to create a $45 billion entity, head of the National Bank of Dubai (NBD) assured the bank's shareholders and staff that their interests would be protected.
Shares in Emirates Bank International PJSC (EBI) and NBD were suspended from trading due to a lack of satisfactory details on the surprise merger, said Essa Kazim, chairman of DFM. He said trading would be halted until they get clarifications from the two banks about the process of the merger.
"Once the market and the Emirates Securities and Commodities Authority (ESCA) are satisfied then we will resume trading in the stocks," he was quoted as saying.
Abdullah Mohamed Saleh, NBD Chairman, welcoming the merger decision said everything possible will be done to protect the interests of the shareholders which are of paramount importance.
"I welcome the decision to merge our two institutions which, when complete, will create not only the largest bank in the UAE but also one of the largest in the region."
Referring to other comments on this announcement appearing in the Press, Saleh said: "It is premature at this early stage to give concrete information on the process development related to the merger."
Under the merger plans, Ahmed Humaid Al Tayer, EBI chairman, will chair the new entity and NBD Chairman Abdullah Saleh will be vice-chairman. The banks will merge on "a desire to create a strong banking entity that complies with the best international practices,'' Al Tayer and Saleh said in a joint statement to the bourse yesterday.
Meanwhile, Standard & Poor's Ratings Services said yesterday it revised its outlook of EBI and NBD to positive from stable, following the merger announcement. At the same time, Standard & Poor's affirmed its 'A/A-1' ratings on both banks.
S&P's analyst Anouar Hassoune said in Paris they expect the merged entity to further explore new avenues to increase geographic diversification.
"The merger is expected to create one of the largest financial services institutions in the Middle East and a systematically important bank in Dubai. The merged entity will display strong financial performance, robust capitalisation, sound liquidity, and a well-diversified funding mix.
Nevertheless, although name, sector, and business diversification will increase, the merged entity will remain a domestic bank by nature," said Hassoune.
The S&P's analyst said synergies are expected to be sizable, as the two merging institutions have so far had different business models.
"EBI has been very much entrenched in the domestic corporate and retail markets, and has developed good business diversification out of pure lending; NBD has been more focused on corporate banking, and has been a late, but successful, entrant in retail and investment banking, as well as operating in private banking fields. The merged entity should therefore have a number of complementary areas on which to capitalise, while at the same time curbing operating costs and strengthening support functions such as risk management, IT, audit, and compliance, which have all assumed an unprecedented level of importance in both the UAE and the Gulf region as a whole."
Together the two merged banks have assets of $45 billion. As one entity they would overtake Saudi Arabia's National Commercial Bank, which had assets of $41.5 billion at the end of 2006.
EBI has outstanding bonds and loans worth $3.6 billion and NBD's debt is $1.8 billion. At yesterday's close, EBI had a market value of Dh30.3 billion, more than double NBD's Dh13.7 billion, placing them respectively in the second and sixth biggest positions as lenders by market value.
Emirates Bank, in which the Dubai government owns a 77 per cent stake, reported a 9 per cent rise in profit in 2006 to Dh1.89 billion while earnings at NBD increased less than 0.5 per cent to Dh1.11 billion. The government owns about 15 per cent of NBD.
EBI's shares slumped 17 per cent in the last 12 months to close at Dh13 on Tuesday. NBD's shares are down 36 per cent over the period and closed at Dh10.55.
With the opening of the Qatar branch on March 4, NBD's extensive network now includes 40 branches across the GCC. The bank also has a branch in London as well as a representative office in Teheran.
EBI has 41 branches, including two overseas — in London and Riyadh, besides representative offices in India, Iran and Singapore.
It owns 10 per cent stake in Bank of Beirut and is a strategic shareholder of Al Baraka Banking Group.
It also owns Emirates Islamic Bank and Emirates Financial Services as well as Union Properties.
Ah, that's better. This one in Arabic and English...
DFM 08 March 2007:
(EBI) Emirates Bank: Clarification by chairmen of EBI & NBD regarding the merge of the two banks.
EBI and NBD chairmen say they will keep DFM updated. They didn't do much of a job of that in the first instance. Anyway, it seems this was enough to allow EBI and NBD shares to be allowed to trade again.
DFM 08 March 2007:
(DFM): Trading to be resumed on NBD & EBI shares starting from 08/03/2007
And the markets are out of control today ...
... in the first hour of trading today we've seen the execution of a total of 4 trades in EBI and 6 trades in NBD. Total volume between them of less than 400,000 shares and 5m dhs. Both stocks price increased by about 5% so far. Outstanding .
At the other extreme of activity we have DFM shares (listed yesterday) up to 60m dhs worth (ten times) and 25m shares from 1200 trades in the first hour today.
EBI & NBD 08 March 2007:
Mr Eassa Kazem
Chairman
Dubai Financial Market
Your Excellency,
With reference to our announcement for the merger of Emirates Bank International and National Bank of Dubai, the two banks have agreed to the follow International best practice, including, inter-alia the following:
- Financial and legal due diligence,
- Independent valuation,
- Transaction and capital structuring,
- Regulatory and other related approvals,
- Integration.
The Boards and management of both banks are working closely to ensure the best interests of all our shareholders, customers and employees.
We will keep you updated on the progress of the above processs.
We believe this is a momentous step for the United Arab Emirates financial sector and we look forward to your continued support for the successful completion of this merger.
Apologies if you missed the sarcasm in the previous post. Obviously trading in NBD and EBI shares was muted as usual, although the 5% rise in share price for both companies on a slight increase in volumes was no doubt because of the announced merger.
Look at the disclosure again in the previous post, and keep in mind that this comes from the chairmen of two large listed companies in the UAE, which, when merged will be smaller than only Etisalat and Emaar by market capitalisation. And this was sufficient clarity for the DFM and ESCA?
Here's the Gulf News doing their best to make it sound all tickety-boo with soaring share prices, which BTW places EMAAR and ETISALAT market cap as lower than the combined EBI/NBF bank. Odd, I have these market cap figures...
Emaar Properties market capitalisation AED 80 billion
Etisalat Telecoms market capitalisation AED 73 billion
EBI Emirates Bank market capitalisation AED 33 billion
NBD National Bank Dubai market cap AED 13 billion
EBI/NBD combined market cap AED 46 billion
Gulf News 09 March 2007:
Shares of EBI and NBD soar
By Shakir Husain, Staff Reporter
Dubai: Trading in shares of Emirates Bank International (EBI) and National Bank of Dubai (NBD) resumed yesterday after the two banks provided further information on their merger plans to Dubai's stock exchange.
The banks told the Dubai Financial Market (DFM) they will follow the "best international practice" to complete the merger that will create the biggest banking institution in the UAE in terms of deposits, profit, assets and market capitalisation.
"The boards and management of both banks are working closely to ensure the best interest of all our shareholders, customers and employees," a joint statement by EBI chairman Ahmad Humaid Al Tayer and NBD chairman Abdullah Mohammad Saleh said.
EBI shares closed five per cent higher at Dh13.65 and NBD moved up 4.74 per cent to end at Dh14.35, boosted by the merger move.
DFM halted trading in shares of the two banks on Wednesday, citing lack of clear information on the merger announced on Tuesday.
EBI and NBD told DFM they plan to start the process of financial and legal due diligence, independent valuation, capital structuring, integration and regulatory approvals.
More information
"They have promised us more information when they have it," DFM chairman Eisa Kazim told Gulf News.
The merger exercise will be "a long one" and could take up to two years as it involves two of the largest banking institutions in the country, said Walid Shihabi, head of research at Shuaa Capital (SHUAA) in Dubai.
The banks have not yet given any indication about the terms of their merger.
"There are a lot of considerations like whether the merger is going to be purely based on the market capitalisation of the two firms. Assets, shareholder equity, profitability are going to be important elements," Shihabi said.
Overlap of employees and branches and technology integration are seen as other major challenges.
The Dubai government, which owns 76 per cent of EBI and controls 14 per cent of NBD, will have 56 per cent share of the new, yet-unnamed bank if the ratio of market cap is used for the merger, Shihabi said.
Shuaa places the new entity at number five in the Middle East in terms of market capitalisation. Al Rajhi and Samba of Saudi Arabia, National Bank of Kuwait and Jordan's Arab Bank rank higher at their current market value.
Ratings agency Fitch sees the merger as a "welcome development for the over-banked UAE."
It said the proposed merger is credit rating neutral based on the information currently available.
The agency said it will monitor developments and will make any further rating decision in due course.
Another ratings firm, Moody's, also said it will wait for details regarding the form of the merger, the potential synergies to be derived and the challenges associated with the execution of such a transaction before its ratings pronouncement.
These sound like the most sensible comments I've read so far about the merger, i.e. need more information before making an assessment.
What, didn't Moody's read the chairmen's disclosure?
Khaleej Times 09 March 2007:
It's early to assess merger: Moody's
BY A STAFF REPORTER
ABU DHABI — In response to reports of a potential merger involving Emirates Bank International PJSC (EBI) and National Bank of Dubai PJSC (NBD), Moody's Investors Service has not taken any rating action, noting that it is too early to assess the outcome of these discussions and the potential impact on the banks' ratings.
Moody's will await details regarding the form of the merger, the potential synergies to be derived and the challenges associated with the execution of such a transaction.
The two banks have announced that they are in discussions about the possible merger, subject to shareholder and regulatory approval. In the event that the merger comes to fruition, the merged entity could become the largest bank in the United Arab Emirates, with estimated assets of Dh165 billion, making it one of the largest banks in the GCC. Furthermore, the merged entity would enjoy leading market shares in a number of business lines in the domestic market, particularly in Dubai.
Moody's also notes that the common ownership of the two banks could facilitate this merger. The government of Dubai, with a 77 per cent stake in EBI and a 14 per cent stake in NBD, appears to have been a catalyst for these discussions. Moody's believes that the merged institution could enjoy a significantly enhanced franchise with diversified business lines, and this could have positive rating implications.
Moody's adds that the banking system in the UAE is one of the most fragmented in the region. Consequently, consolidation moves are welcome as they contribute to the creation of a more competitive environment, with stronger and more diversified institutions that could play a more active role in the domestic and regional markets.
If this merger goes ahead, Moody's believes that it could be a prelude to further consolidation in the market, especially given that a number of other institutions have common shareholders.
Emirates Bank International is currently rated A1/Prime-1/C-, with a stable outlook; and National Bank of Dubai is rated A1/Prime-1/D+, also with a stable outlook.
Headquartered in Dubai, Emirates Bank International reported total assets of Dh95.9 billion in 2006, while National Bank of Dubai reported total assets Dh69.3 billion.
CI also make the comment that further mergers of UAE banks could be on the cards...
Press Release 10 March 2007:
CI: A positive development for Dubai
The proposed merger between National Bank of Dubai (NBD) and Emirates Bank International (EBI) is not expected to immediately alter the ratings of either institution.
Capital Intelligence's (CI) foreign currency long-term and short-term ratings for both banks are A+ and A1 respectively; this is similar to the ratings assigned to the sovereign. The financial strength ratings of both banks are among the highest in the country at A+.
CI believes that the merger is a positive development. It is clear that the banks in the country in their present form and size cannot entirely accommodate the future requirements of Dubai and indeed of the UAE. The emergence of solid, globally-scaled, financial institutions is critical to power economic growth and to nudge the UAE from 'developing country' status into the 'first world'.
EBI and NBD are both healthy institutions, strongly capitalised and profitable, and both enjoy sound asset quality. EBI's liquidity was becoming stretched with credit expansion outpacing customer deposit growth, and although NBD has better liquidity, its key ratios tightened in 2006.
Both banks are presently sourcing the international markets for long-term funding. Their options could widen after the merger and perhaps costs can be negotiated downwards. The enhanced capital base will expand the single obligor limit (currently set by the central bank at 7% of capital) and enable the new entity to increase exposures to the many large projects in the country. This business would otherwise move to foreign banks.
CI also believes that this merger between two healthy institutions will trigger other mergers in the country and perhaps eventually end the fragmentation of the UAE banking sector.
Original report was from Bloomberg (I can't find it on their site, as usual) and reprinted in Gulf News and Khaleej Times.
I also read or heard that the EBI chairman is expected to be chairman of MergedBank PJSC, while NBD chairman will be the deputy or vice-chairman of the new bank.
Committee set up to oversee banks' merger
BY ISSAC JOHN (Chief Business Reporter)
DUBAI — A steering committee headed by Shaikh Ahmed bin Saeed Al Maktoum, President of Dubai Civil Aviation and Chairman of Emirates Group, has been set up to oversee the merger process between UAE's two leading banks, which aim at creating the region's largest bank with $45 billion in assets.
Ahmed Humaid Al Tayer, Chairman of Emirates Bank International (EBI), who has been nominated as chairman of the new banking giant, said although no time frame was set for the official launch of the new bank, it would happen as soon as the legal framework and due diligence are concluded.
The steering committee comprises chairmen, CEOs and CFOs of both EBI and National Bank of Dubai (NBD) in addition to their legal advisers.
Welcoming the merger decision as beneficial to the banking sector, the national economy and shareholders of both banks, Al Tayer said interests of everyone would be taken into consideration. "With the opening up of the banking sector, our national economy needs a bank that can compete with its international counterparts by ensuring excellent service and competitive edge. This is the time for mergers globally and regionally and the move heralds an era of consolidation in the UAE banking sector," Al Tayer said following EBI's Annual General Meeting (AGM).
Merger heralds new banking era
Dr Mohammad Al Asoomi, Special to Gulf News
The merger of the National Bank of Dubai (NBD) and Emirates Bank International (EBI) is considered a significant development in the banking sector, which paves the way for a new stage of banking in the UAE.
With 46 banks operating in the country, the merger marks the beginning of a new era, complete with its challenges including the nature of banking services and global competition.
These banks have played an important development role, which can be seen through their banking activities and the rapid growth rates that keep up with the country's annual growth rates of 10 per cent in average during the past three decades.
Financial services have also developed to be on par with their counterparts in developed industrial countries.
These positive developments in the banking sector were in parallel with the national economy's rapid growth, which resulted in advanced financial and banking needs in the past years.
However, the current global economic changes, especially after the establishment of the World Trade Organisation (WTO) in 1995, imposed new and serious challenges.
Therefore, major financial institutions have been established worldwide, which required the UAE banking sector to create institutions with a competitive edge.
Major mergers have taken place in various sectors in Europe, including the banking sector, reducing the number of banks in each European country to a minimum.
This tendency stems from economic and operational reasons, which are not related to competitive capabilities only, but also to reducing operation costs, and expansion in the nature and quality of financial services, and the ability to finance giant projects demanded by modern economies.
Leading international financial institutions have welcomed the step, such as Standard and Poor's - the world's foremost provider of independent credit ratings - which raised the credit ratings of the two banks to the AA-1 category, because of its awareness of the expected positive impact of the merger, and the major role the new bank will play.
Earlier experiences indicate that operation costs may be cut by between 25 and 30 per cent, which means an increase in the efficiency and profit of the newly merged financial establishment.
The new banking entity will receive many regional and international financing opportunities in the future.
The merger will create a strong banking institution, considered one of the largest in the region, with assets of Dh165 billion ($45 billion). This will enable the new institution to play a key role in local and regional stock markets.
The merger meets the demands of the globalisation age, economic openness and fierce competition in global markets, which is expected to heat up in the next decades. It will pave the way for many new bank mergers in the region, especially since many institutions in the UAE are ready for this step.
Led by the WTO, the world is heading towards the liberalisation of the service sector, including banking services. Commodities such as clothes had earlier been liberalised, which led to tremendous changes in the industry of these projects, and the shifting of power centres to new countries.
Although the GCC countries' attempts to liberalise their service sectors and agricultural products have not advanced in five years, effort is still being exerted to make the new round of talks about the subject a success and to move towards commercial liberalisation regardless of the conflicting views.
Once this happens, only big establishments would be able to offer good commodities and services at acceptable prices, since quality and cost are key issues in global open markets.
So if you work there, you don't need to worry about your jobs then...
... um, but what about the CEOs and vice CEOs, and vice chairmen? There's six people for three jobs - so three of them could be brushing up their CVs no ? The two chairman have already got their roles assigned (see previous posts).
Gulf News 21 March 2007:
No layoffs envisaged from NBD merger
By Shakir Husain, Staff Reporter
Dubai: National Bank of Dubai will not lay off employees following the merger with Emirates Bank International, a top official said, assuring employees that there is a shortage of bankers.
"The National Bank of Dubai (NBD) - Emirates Bank International (EBI) merger will not result in staff layoffs," Abdullah Mohammad Saleh, chairman of NBD, said following the bank's annual general meeting (AGM) that approved its annual results.
"We are doing everything possible on both sides to make sure that there are no lay-offs. There is already a shortage of skilled national and expatriate banking professionals."
He added the merger steering committee has already met to set the wheels in motion.
"All the mechanisms are in place and necessary actions are being taken for the merger. We are at a very early stage of the process," he said.
The AGM approved the board's recommendation for a cash dividend of 40 per cent and a script dividend of 20 per cent, equivalent to Dh0.60 per share.
Saleh said the strategic development plan will continue and the bank plans to open offices in Saudi Arabia and Singapore and will also strengthen its London office.
Emirates Bank International (EBI) and National Bank of Dubai (NBD) have approached four financial advisers, from which the chosen one of the four will act as joint financial adviser for the banks’ merger.
Khaleej Times 22 March 2007:
NBD emphasises focus on driving shareholder value
BY LUCIA DORE (Assistant Editor, Business)
DUBAI — "We are continuing to search for ways to drive shareholder value," said National Bank of Dubai (NBD), CEO Douglas Dowie, speaking to Press after the bank's annual general meeting on Tuesday evening. "We aim to drive year-on-year sustainable growth. We don't like volatility of performance. We make sure to position ourselves in sectors of the market that drive value," he said.
One of those sectors is the Indian market. In 2006, NBD formed a strategic alliance with the Indian-based HDFC Bank to further extend its penetration to the expatriate community — "a first step into that particular market," Dowie said.
India is an important market for the bank, he continued, presenting "huge opportunities and lots of challenges." One of the advantages the HDFC alliance brings is that it enables the bank to discover where "the best opportunities" in the Indian market lie, he said.
Another important strategy for realising shareholder value is merging with, or acquiring, another bank — a strategy NBD is adopting by merging with Emirates Bank International (EBI). Even though one of the key drivers of bank consolidation is to drive down costs, the merger is unlikely to result in job losses.
Speaking yesterday, NBD chairman, Abdulla Mohammed Saleh, said that the bank was "doing everything possible to avoid lay-offs," adding that "there was already a shortage of skilled national and expatriate banking professionals." In fact, the opposite was likely, with a merged entity resulting in "more demand for high calibre skills," he said.
He added: "All the mechanisms are in place and necessary actions are being taken for the merger. We are at the very early stage of the process." A high level steering committee was formed last week under the chairmanship of Shaikh Ahmed bin Saeed Al Maktoum to lead the merger. It comprises chairmen, CEOs and CFOs of both EBI and NBD, in addition to their legal advisers.
A separate statement made available yesterday said that, in the initial phase of the merger, the committee had agreed to focus on delivering a financial closing before taking the required steps for operational integration.
The statement said that the banks had agreed to appoint a joint financial advisor to guide the overall financial closing process, including the valuation process. A request for proposal (RFP) has been sent to four institutions, the statement said. The two banks may also appoint independent advisors to provide fairness opinion on the valuation so that shareholders are assured that the valuation for both the banks serves their best interests.
According to the statement, both banks will also carry out due diligence on each other in line with international best practices, and this will commence shortly. EBI has appointed KPMG and NBD has appointed Ernst & Young to carry out this task.
Management of both banks also stress the importance of continuing to focus on delivering value to all stakeholders. They have agreed to review their ongoing initiatives to ensure that synergies can be derived in the merged entity, a bank with assets of about $45 billion.
The merger is seen as an important step for the banking environment within UAE and the wider Middle East. Chairman of Emirates Bank, Ahmad Humaid Al Tayer said: "The financial and managerial strength and the economies of scale of the merged bank will allow us to compete more effectively in the rapidly changing and intensely competitive marketplace. The merged bank's stronger home base will add momentum to the overseas expansion that the two banks have successfully pursued over the past years."
And NBD chairman, Abdulla Mohammed Saleh, said: "The merger gives us the advantage to capitalise on the unique strengths of both banks to serve our customers better and deliver greater shareholder value."
Emirates Bank Group and National Bank of Dubai appoint Goldman Sachs International as lead financial advisor
The Joint Steering Committee (JSC) of Emirates Bank Group (EBI) and National Bank of Dubai (NBD), announce the appointment of Goldman Sachs International as its lead financial advisor.
This is in connection with the merger of the two banks announced on March 6th, 2007 that will create the market leader in the United Arab Emirates and a leader in the financial institutions sector in the region and Middle East. Following a comprehensive selection and evaluation process which included a number of the leading global M&A advisors, the JSC has concluded that Goldman Sachs is best positioned to advise it on this landmark transaction based on their track record, experience and sector expertise.
In a joint statement H.E. Ahmad Humaid Al Tayer, Chairman of Emirates Bank and Mr. Abdullah Mohammad Saleh, Chairman of National Bank of Dubai said - 'We are delighted to appoint Goldman Sachs as our lead financial advisor. This appointment is an important step towards the merger of our banks. Goldman Sachs brings valuable experience and expertise which we believe will contribute to delivering an effective merger of our two banks and underscores our commitment to implement the merger in accordance with international best practices.'
Wassim Younan, Chief Executive Officer for Middle East & North Africa at Goldman Sachs International stated - 'We are delighted by the appointment and the opportunity to advise on this merger. We recognize the importance of this transaction in the number of precedents it will set as well its strategic impact on the banking sector in the region. We are committed on delivering superior execution and sound financial advice to our clients in accordance with our Business Principles.'
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? The two chairman have already got their roles assigned (see previous posts).
