Saudi Investor Set to Inject Sh5 billion Into Bait-ul-Ma'al to Boost Lending

NAIROBI, KENYA: The operator of Bait-ul-Ma'al in Kenya Aleumlatilislamii PLC is set to ink a deal with a Saudi Arabian conglomerate that is estimated to be worth Sh5 billion. 

The deal would pay shareholders in the Bait-ul-Ma'al an estimated return of 15,000 percent on an investment that was made at the beginning of this year while setting the ground for the Bait-ul-Ma'al to dominate interest-free Islamic retail finance in Kenya. 

"Its a good deal all across the board, it gives us the capacity to be able to roll-out interest-free credit in Kenya in a manner that we felt would only be possible five years down the line" says a Bait-ul-Ma'al investor familiar with the deal.

The deal which requires the approval of shareholders also includes the acquisition of 15 per cent of equity in the public company. 

The intricacies of the deal however remain very tightly guarded. 

"The devil is in the details which I am not able to reveal to the press, what I can say is this. The deal involves the acquisition of our special class licences, ICO shares and equity in a package deal. It is complex but very attractive deal from a shareholder perspective," she continues. 

This however is not the only offer that is on the table. It appears that the interest that the Bait-ul-Ma'al has generated both locally and internationally is what has led to this offer. 

"On a daily basis we get all sorts of offers but out of a myriad of offers you will always get one or two really good ones. This is one of those cases. That said the shareholders must come together and agree to accept the deal. If they do, not only will they become extremely wealthy, the financial landscape in Kenya will change dramatically forever" she says. 

It has emerged that shareholders who are permitted to acquire shares on a preferential basis have begun to stock up on shares knowing that they will be able to sell their shares if the deal is inked at a massive premium.