Oman’s Bank Dhofar and Omnivest compete to bid for Ahli Bank

Muscat: Oman’s Bank Dhofar revised its offer for Ahli Bank just a day after a consortium led by Oman International Development and Investment Co. said it plans to bid for the lender.

Bank Dhofar, the Gulf state’s second-largest lender with $11.2 billion in assets, said a potential merger with Ahli Bank would provide a “compelling opportunity” for shareholders, without providing further details. In April, Ahli Bank’s board of directors turned down an initial, non-binding offer from Bank Dhofar that would have created an entity with $19 billion in assets.

On Tuesday, Omnivest - as the consortium is know - submitted an offer to acquire Ahli Bank’s entire issued capital for a price of 185 baizas per share, valuing the bank at about 360.7 million rials. The consortium then plans to merge Ahli Bank with Oman Arab bank.

Muscat-based Bank Dhofar has attempted to merge with local rivals in the past with no success. It considered a combination with National Bank of Oman, but the lenders abandoned that deal in 2019. Talks with Bank Sohar for a potential combination collapsed in 2016 after three years of deliberations.