Faysal Bank Clarifies Ownership Following Parent Company’s Acquisition Announcement

Faysal Bank has clarified that its ultimate beneficial ownership will not change even if its parent entity proceeds with a potential sale of assets.

According to a notice sent to the Pakistan Stock Exchange, Faysal Bank said that Ithmaar Holding will remain its ultimate beneficial owner.

This refers to a prior announcement by Ithmaar Bank that its parent entity, Ithmaar Holding, had signed a Memorandum of Understanding and had entered into discussions for the potential acquisition of a group of assets from Ithmaar Holding’s group of companies by Al Salam Bank.

Faysal Bank is a subsidiary of the Bahraini bank Ithmaar Bank, which is a wholly-owned subsidiary of Ihtmaar Holdings. It explained in the notice that Ithmaar Bank, directly and indirectly, holds about 66.78 percent of the total shareholding in Faysal Bank. This means that Ithmaar Holding is the ultimate beneficiary owner of the total shareholding in Faysal Bank.

Faysal Bank clarified that it is not part of the group of assets owned by Ithmaar Holdings that may be acquired by Al Salam Bank. It added that the proposed transaction is still at an early stage and is not legally definitive.

A press release by Al Salam Bank read: “The potential acquisition will be subject to the completion of successful due diligence, the agreement of terms between both parties, and the receipt of all necessary regulatory and corporate consents”.

Faysal Bank Limited is a Pakistani Islamic and commercial bank based in Karachi. It is a subsidiary of the Bahraini bank Ithmaar Bank, which is owned by Ihtmaar Holdings. It recently won the ‘Best Islamic Bank for Transformation and Innovation 2021’ award at the Global Islamic Finance Awards.