Merger of Abu Dhabi banks NBAD, FGB to take place on April 1

The official merger of the National Bank of Abu Dhabi (NBAD) and First Gulf Bank (FGB) will take place on April 1, it was announced on Monday.

Trading of the new shares following the merger will begin from April 2, official news agency WAM reported.

The merger of the two banks, first announced in July 2016, is expected to create one of the largest banks in the Middle East.

Also read: NBAD, FGB shareholders approve merger

The Abu Dhabi Securities Exchange said it has now completed the procedures for the unification of stakeholder records of both banks.

It is seeking to ensure there are no technical obstacles to the trading of the new shares, the report said.

The merger will involve a share swap with FGB shareholders receiving 1,254 NBAD shares for each FGB share they hold.

Following the issue of new NBAD shares, FGB shareholders will own roughly 52 per cent of the combined bank and NBAD shareholders 48 per cent.

The government of Abu Dhabi and government related entities will own approximately 37 per cent of the merged entity.

FGB shares will be delisted from the Abu Dhabi Securities Exchange and the company will be dissolved on the effective date of the merger.

The indicative market price of the new shares will be calculated based on the last traded price of both banks in the market before the merger.

The new bank is expected to produce cost savings of Dhs500m a year from 2019, primarily through the closure of overlapping branches and duplicated administration, according to Egypt’s EFG Hermes.

The estimated one-time business unification cost of the merger is estimated at Dhs600m.

At the end of 2016, the combined total assets of the two banks stood at an estimated Dhs665.8bn, with combined deposits of Dhs402.58bn and a combined loan value of Dhs357.2bn.

Also read: NBAD, FGB merger could lead to 30% cost savings

Four senior staff to leave Abu Dhabi bank NBAD ahead of merger with FGB