Arranged by a Pool of Regional and International Banks
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Al-Ghunaim: The facility will be utilized for general corporate purpose and lengthen the tenor of our borrowings
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Pepper: The deal closed very quickly due to the financial stability of the company
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Kuwait - 10/09/2006 - Global Investment House "Global" signed today an agreement to receive a general syndicated loan of USD300 million from a group of regional and international banks.
The 3 - year term loan is a vast increase from the proposed syndication agreement of
USD150 million facility between Global and Abu Dhabi Commercial Bank, Standard Bank,
West LB Ag, who were the Mandated Lead Arrangers and underwriters.
Mrs. Maha Al-Ghunaim, Chairperson and Managing Director of Global signed the agreement in a special ceremony at the company’s headquarters with three mandated lead arrangers.
“We are delighted to have 29 major international banks participate in the syndicated loan that will be used for general corporate purpose and lengthen the tenor of our borrowings for more conservative assets and liabilities matching,” Mrs. Al-Ghunaim said after the ceremony.
“We initially requested USD150 million, however, the banks agreement to double the syndicated loan demonstrate a strong belief on the part of the syndicate in Global as a regional power house and our ability to fulfill our investment strategies as well as our financial commitments.”
It is worth noting that Global has acquired a similar USD75 million facility last September.
Mr. David Pepper, Executive Director of WestLB London Branch said, “We are very pleased to again arrange this syndication for Global and we have full confidence and trust in
Global’s strength in the financial industry.”
He affirmed that the loan is, "not only a landmark in terms of Global Investment House international borrowing programme but also the largest conventional debt facility raised by a
Kuwaiti investment bank in the euro loan markets."

He added that the increase syndicated loan facility of USD300 million raised is a good indication of the credibility and perception of Global being one of the leading financial institutions in the GCC and MENA region.
The banks commitment to this loan gives them diversification, exposure to the region with an interest of 0.8% over LIBOR.
The 29 regional and international Banks committed to this loan are; Abu Dhabi Commercial
Bank, Standard Bank, West LB, Arab African International Bank, Arab Bank, Burgan Bank,
HSH Nordbank, National Bank of Abu Dhabi, Bank Audi SAL- Audi Saradar Group,
Cathay United Bank, Commercial Bank of Kuawit , First Gulf Bank, Mashreqbank,
Maybank, National Bank of Dubai, Taiwan Business Bank, Tunis International Bank, State
Bank of India, Abu Dhabi Investment Company, AKA Ausfuhrkredit, Bank of Kuwait & the Middle East, Doha Bank, First Bank, Union National Bank, United Bank Limited,
Jordan International Bank, Hua Nan Commercial Bank , Shanghai Commercial & Savings
Bank and Banque BIA.
As at 31 st March 2007 Global had an asset base of KD 724 million (USD 2.5 billion), shareholders’ equity of KD232 million (USD 802 million) and recorded total revenues of
KD35 million (USD120 million) for the first 3 months of 2007 compared to KD26 million
(USD 90 million) in the same period during 2006.
For the first quarter of 2007, the company’s assets under management increased by more than 14% from USD6.277 billion in 2006 to USD7.35 billion, demonstrating their large and diversified revenue base and strong presence in the GCC markets. Global was able to raise over USD2.54 billion in equity financing and generating more than USD5.58 billion of capital markets business from its clients, making it the leading financial institution house in
Kuwait and the region.
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About Global Investment House “Global”
Global Investment House “Global” is a full-fledged investment company incorporated in 1998, and falls under the regulation of the Central Bank of Kuwait. Its underlying foundation is to meet the high expectations of local and international clients, and to enhance the investment service industry and the capital market in Kuwait and the region. Today, Global stock lists on the Kuwait, Bahrain, and Dubai Stock Exchanges, with branches and affiliates in Bahrain, Dubai and Abu Dhabi (UAE), Jordan, Qatar, and Sudan. Global plays an important role in promoting investment opportunities in the Arabian Gulf Peninsula to investors through expert financial engineering, in-depth research and reports to advance the capital market in the region. Thus, Global’s achievements have been recognized on local, regional, and international levels. The company’s current assets under management reached KD2.130 billion (USD7.355 billion) as of 31 March 2007.
For more information about Global, please contact Khaled A. AlAttar, Assistant Manager Media Relations. Email: kattar@global.com.kw
, Tel: (965) 240-0551 Ext. 402; Fax: (965) 242-0498; P.O. Box: 28807 Safat, 13149
Kuwait; Web; www.globalinv.net
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About WestLB
WestLB is a European commercial bank established in 1969 by the merger of its old-established predecessor institutions, (Landesbank für Westfalen Girozentrale), and integrated into (Landesbank) (now NRW. Bank).

The bank was established on August 1, 2002 and offers a full range of products and services of a universal bank, focusing on lending, structured finance, capital market and private equity products, asset management, transaction services and real estate finance. With total assets of € 265.0 billion as of December 31, 2005. It is one of Germany’s leading financial services providers working in close partnership with the savings banks.
WestLB employs 6,353 staff (as of December 30, 2005) and now competes in the market as a new type of universal bank without state guarantees.