Latest news with #OR10m
Yahoo
6 days ago
- Business
- Yahoo
Oman issues new regulatory framework for digital banks
The Central Bank of Oman (CBO) has issued a regulatory framework governing the licensing and operation of digital banks. The framework, effective 1 June 2025, applies to digital banks operating in the Sultanate of Oman and introduces regulatory relaxations along with certain business restrictions. It stipulates that applicants must take the form of either a locally incorporated joint-stock company (SAOC or SAOG) or a branch of a foreign bank that is subject to regulatory oversight in its home jurisdiction. Two categories of licences are defined, with Category 1 permitting banking operations without business limitations and requiring a minimum paid-up capital of OR30m. Category 2 allows limited operations and requires a minimum paid-up capital of OR10m, with capital requirements in both cases to be determined by the CBO Governor. Applicants must have experience in the fintech industry and possess the financial capacity to establish a digital bank. They must also maintain a team with adequate expertise, while all relevant individuals, including ultimate beneficial owners, board members and senior management, must meet the CBO's fit and proper criteria. In the case of foreign digital bank branches, applicants must obtain approval from their home supervisory authority and receive a no-objection to joint supervision from the same, while shell banks are explicitly prohibited. A licensed digital bank is required to establish a physical presence in Oman either as its principal place of business or, in the case of a foreign branch, as a registered office. Licensed digital banks must comply with all applicable laws and frameworks, including those related to anti-money laundering and terrorism financing in a fully digitalised environment. They must also adhere to frameworks for financial consumer protection, cybersecurity and resilience, digital onboarding and e-KYC, anti-fraud measures, and outsourcing rules, including the use of cloud services. "Oman issues new regulatory framework for digital banks " was originally created and published by Retail Banker International, a GlobalData owned brand. The information on this site has been included in good faith for general informational purposes only. It is not intended to amount to advice on which you should rely, and we give no representation, warranty or guarantee, whether express or implied as to its accuracy or completeness. You must obtain professional or specialist advice before taking, or refraining from, any action on the basis of the content on our site. Error in retrieving data Sign in to access your portfolio Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data
Zawya
15-04-2025
- Business
- Zawya
Asyad Shipping below water as stabilisation ends: IFR
Volatile global markets meant it was perhaps inevitable that newly listed Asyad Shipping would need support from stabilisation following its IPO, though Omani companies haven't always had the easiest debuts of late anyway. Asyad Shipping is the first Omani IPO to include stabilisation and a brownshoe was used. The company allocated up to OR10m of proceeds to stabilisation manager Ubhar Capital to support the shares. Ubhar spent OR8.38m in stabilisation, shrinking the IPO to OR119.7m (US$310.9m). Purchases were made at the OR0.123 issue price and OR0.118. The price range for the IPO was OR0.117–OR0.123 and shares on Monday closed down 0.9% at OR0.116. The IPO initially saw 1.04bn shares sold, representing 20% of the company, in a process run by joint global coordinators EFG Hermes, Oman Investment Bank, Jefferies, JP Morgan and Sohar International and joint bookrunners Credit Agricole/Kepler Cheuvreux and Societe Generale. Shares had traded at or just above issue following the March 12 debut until dropping 4.8% to OR0.118 on April 7. Asyad receives around 51% of time charter equivalent revenue from oil and gas, and oil-exposed local peers have been particularly hit by the fallout from US president Donald Trump's tariff announcements, with OQ Exploration and Production down 13.8% and Abraj Energy Services down 3.1% since markets reopened on April 6 following Eid al-Fitr. Energy names including Aramco and Adnoc Drilling led indices lower last week with losses of more than 5% in a single day. The first Omani deal to include stabilisation used the model from the UAE due to both countries lacking any legal safe harbour from market manipulation rules for a greenshoe run by syndicate banks. Instead both countries use a brownshoe with a third party as stabilisation manager.
Zawya
06-03-2025
- Business
- Zawya
Locals drive pricing for Oman's Asyad Shipping: IFR
Oman's Asyad Shipping has priced its IPO in line with guidance at the top of the OR0.117–OR0.123 range for a OR128.1m (US$332.8m) deal. Pricing values the company at OR640.7m off a 20% free-float of 1.04bn shares. A banker involved said pricing had largely been driven by local investors with some institutions in for smaller sizes than they would have done had the deal come cheaper. Pricing represents a dividend yield of 9%, though an additional payment for the 2024 financial year takes the first-year yield to 12.5%. While this puts the stock at a discount to recent spin-offs by state oil company OQ, which were trading around 8.1%–11.9% when Asyad's books opened, the banker said some weaker aftermarket performances for Middle East stocks last year meant investors were a little cautious. A second banker said international accounts had expected a double-digit dividend yield and while the first-year boost was seen as positive it was not enough to convince these accounts long term. "It was not the easiest of transactions," said a third banker involved. "The Oman story after [OQ Exploration and Production] left people questioning their exposure to this market. The quality of the asset is very good but Oman has made steps forward and steps backward. The biggest factor is the performance of the previous listings." Omani deals last year proved something of a learning curve featuring full pro rata allocations in the case of OQEP and a mixture of pro rata for locals and discretionary for internationals on OQ Base Industries. The former traded poorly, with a 10% discount to retail also a factor that was abandoned for OQBI. OQEP shares remain well below its OR0.39 issue price at around OR0.321. Despite initially holding at or just above the OR0.111 issue price OQBI shares have fallen sharply since January to OR0.102. To provide reassurance to investors Asyad has appointed Ubhar Capital as stabilisation manager with a OR10m brownshoe. The use of stabilisation is a first for Oman and like the UAE required a third party to be appointed due to regulatory concerns around market manipulation. Time spent getting approvals helped add to the long gap before books opened almost four weeks after the deal was announced. 'Some changes to characteristics were positive such as discretionary allocations and stabilisation,' said the second banker. 'You have the features to lure international demand but it's difficult to onboard if pricing is considered too high.' Local demand formed the majority of the book, while international demand was largely driven by hedge funds and a few emerging market specialists. Orders were received beyond the GCC region, notably from the UK, while Saudi demand was lower than expected despite the offer being sharia-compliant. Management roadshows took place in seven of Oman's 11 governorates culminating in an event at the Muscat Stock Exchange. Institutions will be allocated 45% of the shares and retail 25%. Anchors Qatar Investment Authority subsidiary Falcon Investments and Oman government-owned Mars Development and Investment are taking 30%. Shares are expected to begin trading on March 12. "There is still a market in Oman but we need success stories," said the third banker. EFG Hermes, Oman Investment Bank, Jefferies, JP Morgan and Sohar International are joint global coordinators, and joint bookrunners with Credit Agricole/Kepler Cheuvreux and Societe Generale.
