Almarai to offer trust certificates

Dubai, UAE — Almarai Company, Saudi Arabian food and beverages manufacturer and distributor, plans to offer US-dollar-denominated trust certificates under the $200 million Trust Certificate Issuance Program updated by the company on July 14. 

The company has mandated Citigroup, Dubai Islamic Bank, HSBC, J.P. Morgan and Standard Chartered Bank as joint lead managers for the purposes of the offering of the Trust Certificates, Almarai said in a Tadawul statement.

The issuance value will be determined later based on market conditions at that time. Almarai said the aim of the issuance is to fulfill general corporate purposes as detailed in the base offering circular prepared by Almarai in relation to the program.

The offer of the Trust Certificates will be subject to the approval of the relevant regulatory authorities and will be made in compliance with applicable laws and regulations, the statement said.

This announcement is not intended as an invitation or offer to purchase, acquire, or subscribe to any securities, it added.

Almarai reported a net profit of SAR 1.19 billion ($317 million) in H1 2023, up 27 percent compared to SAR940.8 million a year earlier.   

The higher earnings were driven by an 8 percent rise year-on-year (YoY) in revenue and a 27 percent increase YoY in operating profit. 

The first-half results were also lifted by Almarai’s full acquisition of International Dairy and Juice Limited (IDJ) despite higher finance costs.