DFM Welcomes Amlak’s Resumption Of Share Trading

Dubai, UAE 2 June 2015: Dubai Financial Market (DFM) today welcomed the resumption of Amlak Finance PJSC share trading following an opening bell ringing ceremony that took place in the presence of His Excellency Essa Kazim, Chairman of DFM, H.E. Ali Ibrahim Mohammed, Chairman of Amlak Finance PJSC and Arif Alharmi, Managing Director of Amlak Finance PJSC, in addition to senior officials from both sides.

His Excellency, Engineer Sultan Bin Saeed Al Mansoori, UAE Minister of Economy and the Chairman of the ‘Committee to Assess the Condition of some Public Shareholding Companies of the UAE’ (“the Committee”), said: “I am pleased that this final step in Amlak’s restructuring process has been completed, allowing the Company to return to normal business operations and bring full transparency to its shareholders and the Dubai financial markets as a whole. The Steering Committee worked closely with the senior management of the Company throughout the restructuring period, evaluating a number of alternative solutions before reaching a balanced and amicable restructuring package aimed at protecting all stakeholders as well as the Dubai financial market and economy.  The completion of this important restructuring is a clear example of the Government and private sector working successfully together to achieve common goals.”

H.E. added, “We congratulate Amlak’s management and staff for their hard work and loyalty, and thank the shareholders for their support and patience. Our hope is that Amlak will find innovative ways to grow and expand its business, and flourish in the years to come, contributing further to the real estate market and Shariah-compliant mortgage financing industry in the UAE.

Commenting on the share resumption, His Excellency Essa Kazim, Chairman of Dubai Financial Market said “We are delighted to see the shares of Amlak Finance, the leading Islamic finance company in the UAE and one of the most important issuers on DFM, back on our trading screens. Undoubtedly, this step represents a positive development for investors; particularly that Amlak Finance has a large investor base of 29,000 shareholders as enables DFM investors to participate in one of the key sectors in the UAE. This significant milestone highlights the efforts the company’s management has made, over the past years, to finalize the restructuring.”

H.E. Ali Ibrahim Mohammed, Chairman of Amlak Finance PJSC, stated: “I would like to take this opportunity to thank the Steering Committee and Amlak’s Board of Directors for their ongoing support and guidance, and of course our valued shareholders for their patience and unwavering support in the last EGM and AGM. They have played a critical role in paving the way for this milestone.”

Commenting on the start of the Company’s shares trading, Arif Alharmi, Managing Director of Amlak Finance PJSC, said: “This is a significant milestone for Amlak Finance. After nearly seven years of suspension, the Company’s shares have been re-admitted to the DFM, providing us with the opportunity to contribute to the Dubai financial market’s overall performance as well as resume full regulatory reporting and compliance. We continue to strive to deliver long term value for our shareholders and we fully intend to adhere to our commitments with our financiers as part of the restructuring arrangements agreed in November 2014.”

This announcement marks the last step for Amlak in the restructuring process and resumption of trading and follows shareholders’ approval of financial statements for the period between 2008 and 2014 and the re-admission process at DFM at Annual General Meeting (AGM) held in April. The re-admission was later approved by SCA and concerned authorities.

Trading resumed on Amlak’s share based on the last closing price before suspension (AED 1.02) and the stock was exempted from the price cap of 15% up and 10% down during the first session only, so that investors can price the shares flexibly considering the lack of any recent price discovery from the investors. DFM will study the inclusion of Amlak Finance shares into the DFM General Index and the Sub-index of the banking sector after a month of trade resumption, subject to the index rules.