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Continuing its strategic diversification drive through organised investments and divestments, DFM-listed Dubai Investments is planning to exit more of its subsidiaries either through listing or private placements, Khalid Bin Kalban, the company’s Vice Chairman and CEO said.
“There are many potential listing or private placement candidates within Dubai Investments. The magic word is ‘exit’, either through a float or private placement, whichever will give better value for our shareholders. We have not stopped listing companies. The policy is try to exit at least one company every year,” Kalban said on the sideline of an event to announce the launch of the Danah Bay mixed-use beachfront community and lifestyle project on Al Marjan Island in Ras Al Khaimah recently.
“Dubai Investments has about 40 subsidiaries; some of them are small, medium and large. If you can group related activities and bring them together they will become sizable either through exit or private placement. For example, there are a couple of companies or manufacturing units engaged in extrusion,” he said and added that a consultancy is looking at the whole portfolio and Dubai Investments board will consider such corporate action based on its advice.
“We are focused on exits and whatever will give better value for our shareholders we will pursue either through IPOs or private sales. Last year also we listed a few of our subsidiaries and they continue to grow. They will make acquisition or make their own investments,” he said.
Kalban said DIC’s wholly-owned subsidiary Globalpharma is ready for exit either through private placement or listing.
“This company is definitely a potential exit. Globalpharma is a market leader in key generic pharma segments with a strong regional footprint. It is expanding facilities and establishing own setup through manufacturing or distribution,” he said.
Dubai Investments had entered a deal to divest a 50 percent stake in Emirates District Cooling Company (Emicool) to Actis, a leading global investor in sustainable infrastructure, at a corporate valuation of 3.7 billion UAE dirhams ($1 billion) and equity valuation of 2.4 billion dirhams.
(Reporting by Bhaskar Raj; Editing by Anoop Menon)
