Kuwait’s Al Madina Files For Protection, Uncertain Of Viability

Kuwaiti firm Al Madina for Finance and Investment Co said on Wednesday it was uncertain of its ability to continue as a going concern, after posting a 26 per cent drop in assets and widening its losses for the last financial year.

In a statement to the Dubai bourse, where it is cross-listed, the Islamic investment firm cited unpaid contracts, lawsuits with creditors and the confiscation of “the company’s pledged assets for wakala payables”.

Al Madina has applied to a Kuwaiti court for protection from creditors and there is “a material uncertainty that may cast significant doubt about the company’s ability to continue as a going concern”, it said.

The company posted a net loss of 8.2 million Kuwaiti dinars ($29.2 million) for the 2013 financial year, against a 3.3 million dinar loss a year earlier, while total assets fell by more than a quarter to 106.1 million dinars.

Set up in 2005, the firm engages in direct investments, fund management and other financial services across the Middle East and North Africa.