Emaar to use $335m from Namshi sale into real estate development, expects to close deal August 24

Dubai: Emaar says proceeds of $335 million plus from the potential sale of the fashion ecommerce portal Namshi will be invested in core real estate development activity. The developer expects to finalise the sale August 24, subject to completion of the agreement and the required regulatory procedures.

The entire transaction process is expected to take 6 months after the deal gets signed off. It will eventually create a Dh628.68 million net profit for Emaar.

“The transaction is in line with Emaar’s strategy to re-deploy capital across the group with a focus on investing in businesses that are or core strategic value,” the Dubai master-developer said in a statement. Doing so will ‘benefit shareholders in the future’.

Namshi – in which Emaar bought a majority in 2017 and then bought the rest in 2019 – will be sold at $335.20 million (Dh1.23 billion). Emaar’s capital is Dh8.17 billion ($2.26 billion), and thus the ratio of the transaction value to Emaar’s capital is around 15 per cent.

“A valuation of the transaction was conducted by Deloitte, an SCA (Securities and Commodities Authority) approved independent valuer,” the statement added. “The transaction is in line with Emaar’s strategy to divest assets that not core to its primary business so as to create and sustain value for shareholders.”

Mohammed Alabbar, who is the Managing Director of Emaar, is an ‘indirect’ legal owner of 50 per cent stake in noon, which is one of two giant marketplaces in the Gulf.

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