Qatar’s commercial bank acquire majority stake in Turkish bank

Commercial Bank of Qatar has agreed to acquire a 70.84% stake in the Alternatif bank from Anadolu Endustri Holding twice its book value at June 30 2013, a statement by the Commercial Bank said today. The book value of the Turkish bank was around $328 million back in December 31, 2012. The deal could eventually be worth $460 million. The acquisition is subject to regulatory approval and is expected to be completed in the second half of 2013, according to the Commercial Bank of Qatar. Commercial bank will also launch a public tender offer to acquire the 4.16% of Alternatif bank shares held in the public domain. Commercial bank’s international expansion strategy has focused, to date, on pan-GCC opportunities, the statement read. The Bank has successfully acquired minority stakes in National Bank of Oman (34.9%) in 2005 and United Arab Bank (40%) in the UAE in 2008. The Qatari bank has forged successful alliances with these banks, developing their financial and operational efficiency and growing them in step with the economies they serve.