Eshraq Investments completes acquisition of Goldilocks

Eshraq Investments on Tuesday announced that it completed acquisition of Goldilocks Investment Company Limited as part of the policy to diversify its portfolio and boost profitability.

In a statement, the Abu Dhabi-based company said it now owns 99.25 per cent of Goldilocks shares.

The Abu Dhabi Securities Exchange (ADX) listed company said it secured all regulatory approvals and reduced its share capital to Dh1.435 billion from Dh2.325 billion to absorb all the accumulated losses.

"Eshraq has further issued 1,385,073,097 new shares (of a nominal value of Dh1) and registered them in the name of the New Shareholders in exchange for their shares in the Holding pursuant to the agreed terms of the acquisition. Eshraq’s new issued capital is Dh2.82 billion and the company’s total assets now exceed Dh3.8 billion ($1.03 billion)," according to the statement.

The book value today of Eshraq is expected to be in the range of Dh0.92-0.96 per share. The exact book value per share will be firmed up in third quarter of 2022.

Eshraq, which reported a 59 per cent year-on-year decline in first-half net profit to D7.29 million, said it is reviewing its dividend policy and expects to present a revamped dividend policy with dividend guidance soon.

"Eshraq received approval for its buyback proposal in its recently held general assembly meeting. The company intends to commence the buyback once all regulatory approvals are obtained," the statement said.

Key business portfolios

Sharing its key business portfolios, Esharq said Goldilocks (owned 99 per cent by Eshraq) completed its full exit from a public company, GFH Financial Group by the end of April 2022 and Goldilocks has no shareholding in GFH Financial Group today.

Goldilocks (owned 99 per cent by Eshraq) has acquired approximately 50 per cent stake in Thalassa Investments, the partnership that holds 100 per cent stake in Stanford Marine Group and Allianz Marine & Logistics Services. The two companies own and manage over 150 offshore support vessels worth approximately $400 million. The two businesses generated total EBITDA more than $35 million for the first half of 2022. The group has approximately 2x net debt to EBITDA, one of the lowest leverage ratios in the industry.

"We are optimistic that this acquisition will accelerate future growth opportunities and create long-term value for our shareholders. We look forward to provide more updates to the shareholders in the coming weeks," Jassim Alseddiqi, Eshraq's Chairman, said in a statement on July 25.

Goldilocks (owned 99 per cent by Eshraq) also signed an agreement to acquire 51 per cent stake in NCM Investment, a forex, commodity, and index trading company. The acquisition is subject to regulatory approvals customary for such transactions.

Eshraq Investments has an extensive portfolio of residential, hospitality and other real estate projects. It also has a diversified investment portfolio across equities, fixed income, private equity and debt products.

— muzaffarrizvi@khaleejtimes.com