Abu Dhabi’s IHC merges holdings to establish Judan Financial
Abu Dhabi’s International Holding Co., the UAE’s largest publicly traded company, said it plans to launch Judan Financial Holding, a new international financial services firm with $237 billion in assets under management.
The new conglomerate will consolidate IHC’s largest finance businesses, including Alpha Dhabi, 2PointZero Group and Sirius International, providing services in banking, insurance, asset management and fintech.
Sheikh Tahnoon bin Zayed, the UAE National Security Adviser, will serve as Judan’s Chairman, as he does at IHC. Investment Minister Mohamed Alsuwaidi will be CEO, Vice Chairman and Managing Director, according to a government statement.
Creating Judan as an umbrella holding company comes amid a broader restructuring in Abu Dhabi’s investment holdings and reflects IHC’s push to build up its financial services globally. The firm will control more than 20 operating companies and serve over 11 million clients in 13 countries.
Last month, Abu Dhabi’s newest sovereign wealth fund, L’Imad Holding, took control of ADQ, creating an investment firm chaired by Crown Prince Sheikh Khaled bin Mohamed. ADQ, which managed $263 billion before the merger, had been chaired by Sheikh Tahnoon and headed by Alsuwaidi, who now leads asset management firm Lunate.
Majid Al Futtaim may be headed for IPO amid stabilization efforts
Dubai’s government has stepped in to stabilize governance at the parent company of Majid Al Futtaim, the conglomerate behind the Mall of the Emirates and brands including Carrefour and Lego in the region.
A special judicial committee has restructured MAF Capital’s board and converted it into a public joint stock company, The Financial Times reports.
This is not the first time the government has assisted the group. Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid, Ruler of Dubai, oversaw inheritance matters after the founder’s death in 2022.
The latest overhaul aims to safeguard one of the Gulf’s most prominent privately owned companies and could pave the way for a future stock exchange listing, the FT reports.
Family-run businesses across the Gulf frequently encounter similar challenges after a founder’s death.
Under its late founder, MAF built a reputation for forward-thinking management, pioneering projects like the region’s first indoor ski slope in Mall of the Emirates and raising capital in global bond markets to fund its expansion.
Abu Dhabi’s IHC seeks to reward investors after surge putters out
International Holding Co., the $240 billion conglomerate that grew out of an obscure Emirati fish farming business, is seeking to reward shareholders as the company’s phenomenal growth spurt has stalled.
The Abu Dhabi-based firm, led by Sheikh Tahnoon Bin Zayed, brother of the UAE’s President, is making plans for a $1.4 billion buyback program aimed at reviving its stock price to “create significant value in the future,” CEO Syed Basar Shueb tells Bloomberg.
Between 2019 and 2022, IHC shares on the Abu Dhabi Securities Exchange rocketed 43,000%. Over the past two years, however, they’ve leveled off and hovered around the level of 400 dirhams.
IHC announced the buyback program May 6 and plans to execute the plan over a one-year period, pending approval from investors and regulators.
“This is our strategy for rewarding our shareholders,” Shueb said.
