Qatari lender nixes NBO – Bank Dhofar merger bid

Muscat, Dec 23 - The Commercial Bank of Qatar (CB), which holds a 34.9 per cent stake in National Bank of Oman (CBO), has announced that it opposes a proposed merger between its subsidiary and Bank Dhofar. The announcement came in a filing by the Qatari lender to the Qatar Stock Exchange on Thursday. It said: “As previously disclosed, the Board of Directors of National Bank of Oman commenced discussions with Bank Dhofar in July 2018 to explore the possibility of a merger between the two entities. Following careful consideration, as a major shareholder in NBO, The Commercial Bank confirms that they have advised NBO that CB does not support the merger.” In response, NBO said it would “consider the interests of all of its shareholders in assessing the merits of a merger with Bank Dhofar”. “NBO will update the market with further information in due course,” Rawan Ahmed al Said, Chairperson, added in a filing to the Muscat Securities Market yesterday.