Mubadala, Temasek sale of Abu Dhabi finance firm said to stall

[DUBAI] Mubadala Development Co and Singapore's Temasek Holdings's sale of Dunia Finance LLC has stalled after bids for the Abu Dhabi consumer finance firm failed to meet shareholder expectations, according to four people with knowledge of the matter.

Some interested parties have withdrawn from the sale process, the people said, asking not to be identified as the matter is private. The company may instead consider an initial public offering next year, one of the people said. Shareholders were seeking about four to five times book value for the company, valuing it at as much as US$1 billion, people with knowledge of the matter said in July.

Dubai's Majid Al Futtaim Holding LLC was among those interested in Dunia, chief executive officer Alain Bejjani said in an interview last month. Morgan Stanley was hired to explore a sale of the business, people familiar also said in July.

"Given the strength of the business and growth potential, the management and shareholders continue to explore a number of strategic options for Dunia," the company said in an e-mailed response to questions. Temasek declined to comment, while Mubadala didn't respond to requests for comment.

Dunia is run by former Citigroup banker Rajeev Kakar, who is also regional chief executive officer of the central and Eastern Europe, Middle East and Africa region for Fullerton. The firm's profit rose 61 per cent to 191 million dirhams (S$72.9 million) in 2014 and it had assets of 1.6 billion dirhams, the company said in March. It was established in 2008 and offers financial products including loans, credit cards, deposits for non-individual customers, and finance for small businesses, according to its website.

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