National Commercial Bank, Saudi Arabia’s biggest lender, has started initial talks with Riyad Bank for a merger, a deal that would create the Gulf’s third-biggest lender with US$182 billion in assets.
Talks might not result in a transaction, National Commercial Bank said in a statement.
The lender said it has coordinated the move with the central bank and that a deal is not expected to result in forced dismissal of staff.
Saudi Arabia is exploring potential mergers to boost its financial services industry after the combination of Saudi British Bank and Alawwal Bank, Bloomberg reported on Monday, citing people familiar with the matter.
The kingdom’s sovereign wealth fund, which owns stakes in some of the biggest lenders, is weighing which banks could be merged to increase scale and competition, the people said, asking not to be identified because the talks are private.
The Public Investment Fund, Saudi Arabia’s wealth fund, owns about 44 percent of National Commercial Bank and 22 percent of Riyad Bank, according to Bloomberg data. National Commercial Bank has a market value of US$38 billion and Riyad Bank US$14 billion.
Riyad Bank shares gained 5.2 percent at the open yesterday, extending this year’s climb to 52 percent. National Commercial Bank shares declined 1.1 percent, trimming its gains this year to 27 percent.
There are fewer than 30 local and international lenders in Saudi Arabia, serving more than 30 million people. The United Arab Emirates (UAE) has almost 50 banks catering to a population of less than 10 million.
“Consolidation has never been at the forefront of concerns among Saudi banks, given the branches per capita are among the lowest in the GCC [Gulf Cooperation Council],” said Aarthi Chandrasekaran, a Dubai-based analyst at Shuaa Capital PSC. “The real need for consolidation is limited because it isn’t such a crowded market like the UAE.”
Three of Abu Dhabi’s state-linked banks are in talks to combine into an institution with US$110 billion of assets. The negotiations follow a tie-up between Abu Dhabi’s two biggest banks last year and the merger of sovereign wealth funds in March.
In Saudi Arabia, the biggest Arab economy, HSBC Holdings PLC’s unit in October agreed to buy a local rival part-owned by Royal Bank of Scotland Group PLC in a US$5 billion deal to create the kingdom’s third-largest lender.
The other Gulf banks in merger talks are Kuwait Finance House, Ahli United Bank, National Bank of Bahrain, Bahrain Islamic Bank, Bank Dhofar, National Bank of Oman, Alizz Islamic Bank and Oman Arab Bank.
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