Dubai’s largest lender Emirates NBD will buy Turkey’s Denizbank from Russia’s state-owned Sberbank for less in dollar terms than previously agreed following the devaluation of the Turkish lira.



Emirates NBD will buy Turkey’s fifth largest private bank for 15.48 billion lira ($2.8 billion), the Dubai bank said on Wednesday, compared to the 14.6 billion lira announced in May, after reaching a new agreement with Sberbank.



Although the lira value is higher, the dollar value in May when the deal was announced was put at the equivalent of $3.2 billion, or about $400 million more that the new price.



The lira has tumbled over concerns about the central bank’s independence and Ankara’s worsening ties with Washington.



Dubai-based Arqaam Capital said the new deal represents a 16 percent discount from the original acquisition price due to the lira’s depreciation



Russia’s biggest bank by assets bought Denizbank in 2012 for about $3.5 billion when it wanted to establish a presence abroad. Selling Denizbank, the biggest asset held by Sberbank outside Russia, is part of a shift back to the domestic market.



Denizbank’s equity amounted to 15.51 billion lira as of December 31, Emirates NBD said in a bourse statement.



The deal will help Emirates NBD diversify its business and establish itself as a leading bank in the region, the bank’s vice chairman Hesham Abdulla al-Qassim said in May.



The transaction comes against a backdrop of Turkey’s strained relations with Gulf states since Ankara stood by Qatar after the United Arab Emirates, Saudi Arabia and others accused Doha of supporting terrorism, a charge it denies.



The deal is expected to close by the end of the second quarter, subject to regulatory approval, Emirates NBD said.

Last Update: Wednesday, 20 May 2020 KSA 14:04 - GMT 11:04