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29 March 2024

$500m equity fund closes

Published
By Mohammed Aly Sergie

(SUPPLIED)   

 

NBD Sana Capital has successfully closed a $500m (Dh1.83bn) Shariah-complaint private equity fund, one of the region’s largest.

 

The firm, an affiliate of National Bank of Dubai (NBD), has recently set up shop at the Dubai International Financial Centre and hired 22 investment professionals.


While NBD Sana Capital closed its books after only a few months on the road, led by managing partner Abrar Mir, many private equity firms around the world have been finding difficulty raising funds during the current credit crunch.

 

It has also been harder to buy out companies over the past six months. A number of deals in the US and Europe have collapsed due to tighter credit and more stringent covenants for loans.
 
Cerberus Capital Management, for example, refused to complete its $4bn buyout of United Rentals. And also in the US, KKR and Goldman Sachs dropped its $8bn acquisition of Harman International Industries.

 

The abundant liquidity in the GCC has made it a natural source of cash for US-based funds, highlighted by last year’s $1.35bn that Mubadala pumped into Carlyle Group for a 7.5 per cent stake.
 
As global private equity players are getting ready to deploy in the Middle East, it is natural for NBD to use its strong local position to front run the competition and mine for deals.
 
NBD Sana Capital is expected to begin deploying capital soon. It claims to have a deal pipeline in place of more than $4bn.