More mergers likely in Abu Dhabi, says Mubadala CEO

Abu Dhabi could potentially see more mergers among institutions seeking synergies, said Khaldoon Khalifa Al Mubarak, chief executive of the state investment fund Mubadala, cited by Reuters.

"There's an appetite for more mergers. I expect to see mergers continue in a positive way in Abu Dhabi," Mubarak told reporters on Thursday, without elaborating on which companies might merge. 

Last June, the Abu Dhabi government ordered the merger of Mubadala and International Petroleum Investment Co. (IPIC), creating a combined entity with $125 billion of assets.

The new fund created will continue to invest in Mubadala’s core areas of energy, metals, technology, real estate, infrastructure, healthcare and aerospace, while also expanding into new ones.

The merger is currently in its final stages and will be completed within weeks, Mubarak said, adding that Mubadala may open offices in China and Asia if necessary, and is eyeing growth potential in India.

The chief executive also confirmed that Mubadala was in talks with Japan's SoftBank to invest in a technology fund of up to $100 billion, being put together with Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund (PIF) and other entities. 

The Mubadala-IPIC merger was announced shortly after Abu Dhabi said it would combine lenders National Bank of Abu Dhabi (NBAD) and First Gulf Bank (FGB) to create the Middle East’s largest bank with nearly AED 642 billion ($175 billion) in assets.

Last November, Bloomberg reported that the UAE capital was also studying the prospects of more bank mergers in a bid to boost its financial services industry. The emirate was considering a plan to merge Abu Dhabi Commercial Bank (ADCB) and Union National Bank (UNB), and also combine Abu Dhabi Islamic Bank (ADIB) with Al-Hilal Bank, it was reported.

However, ADCB, UNB, and ADIB subsequently denied that they were mulling mergers.