Top official denies plans to sell Repton stake

Repton School in Dubai has no plans to offload equity, a top official of an investment group that has set up the school told Emirates Business . Khaled Al Muhairy, CEO, Evolvence Capital, was reacting to reports that claimed Repton was looking to attract partners and was trying to raise capital by selling stake in the education project, which is estimated to be worth Dh800 million. Repton School Dubai, which opened its doors two years ago, offers its students the National Curriculum for England and the International Baccalaureate Diploma. "I have been approached by investment bankers and by individuals with the suggestion that some part of Repton is for sale. I must clarify it's not," said Muhairy. "No education asset owned by Evolvence is for sale," he added. Evolvence has already invested about Dh600m into Repton and plans to invest another Dh200m over the next three years, said Khaled. "There is an expansion going on at Repton. Once complete, it will become the largest school in the Middle East and North Africa," he said. Khaled termed Evolvence's investment into Repton an alternative investment as it is into the healthcare. He said investors into the education project are global and have pitched in finances with a long-term view. "We do not use money from our education project into other investments. Money from the institution remains within the institution," he said on being asked whether schools are an attractive business proposition in Dubai. After expansion, Repton will spread over an area of 3.5 million square foot. It plans to enrol 1,800 students next year. It has facilities for both boarders and day schoolers. The school provides co-education. Its parent branch, which was founded in 1557, is a British independent school located in the village of Repton, in Derbyshire, England. "We will have 2,800 students on our rolls by the end of the next three years," said Muhairy. He said the school has students from 60 nationalities, including from countries such as Kazakhstan, Mozambique and Kenya. "We have visited 20 countries to promote the facilities available on our campus," Muhairy said. Keep up with the latest business news from the region with the daily Emirates Business 24|7 newsletter. To subscribe to the newsletter, please click here .