JEDDAH, 6 June 2007 — A consortium of Saudi business leaders headed by Prince Mishaal A.T. Al-Saud, CEO of Zad Investment Company, has signed a letter of intent with US-based Bear Stearns Asset Management Inc. to form a new joint venture company Bear Stearns Arabia Asset Management (BSAAM).
A Saudi-registered asset management company with headquarters in Riyadh, BSAAM will be “serving institutions and high net worth individuals across the Kingdom,” Mishaal told a press conference at Jeddah’s Laylaty Hall yesterday.
“BSAAM will develop and distribute Shariah-compliant and other investment products. In addition, it will leverage Bear Stearns Asset Management’s world class platform offering traditional equity and fixed income, hedge fund and private equity fund products,” he said.
Mishaal will be the chairman of BSAAM and both Michel Peretie, CEO of Bear Stearns International Ltd., and Christian Yates, international head of Bear Stearns Asset Management, will be on the board of directors. “Bear Stearns will own a 50 percent stake in BSAAM, which will be the group’s first permanent business in the region,” Mishaal said, adding that the new joint venture firm plans to build an international team that will combine expertise in asset management with local knowledge. “The joint venture will combine world class asset management expertise with a deep knowledge of the investment needs and references of large investors across the Kingdom and the rest of the world. This is an exciting time in the economic development of our region and BSAAM will be a leader in offering innovative, high quality, locally-focused Shariah-compliant investment products, in addition to the ‘best in class’ from the rest of the world,” he stressed.
He termed the joint venture as a meeting point between the East and the West and said: “This is a small but major step toward building bridges of understanding (between the West and the Arab world). We hope this new development will lead us to a new economic future.”
“The joint venture will offer structured products that match the increasing demand and sophistication of institutional and high net worth customers in this part of the world,” Ihab El-Hashani, a senior investment adviser to the consortium and member of the BSAAM board of directors, said.
“We are excited at the prospect of working together with our Saudi partners to build a world class Saudi-based asset management company,” Richard A. Martin, chairman and CEO of New York-based Bear Stearns Asset Management, said. “Our goal is to be the leading independent asset manager in the Kingdom and a worldwide leader in Shariah-compliant investment products. This is an important step for Bear Stearns Asset Management in establishing a presence in the GCC,” Marin added.
“The development of Bear Stearns’ business in Saudi Arabia and the other GCC states is key to our strategy for global growth,” Michel Peretie said. “We hope to forge strong relationships in the region, in time allowing us to offer not only asset management products but also a full range of trading, brokerage and advisory services.”
Zad Investment Company is a privately controlled investment firm managing the investments of the family of Mishaal.
In addition, Zad acts as an investment manager for a select number of Saudis. The company invests directly in companies of all kinds, primarily in the Kingdom and elsewhere in the GCC, and also makes passive portfolio investments in vehicles and instruments of all types throughout the world.
Bear Stearns Asset Management Inc., a wholly-owned subsidiary of the Bear Stearns Companies Inc., delivers sophisticated and comprehensive investment solutions building on two core capabilities — investment analytics and investment products. Its investment solutions include traditional, long-only equity and fixed-income asset classes, hedge funds and funds of hedge funds, private equity solutions, advisory services and capital raising. Bear Stearns International Ltd. is a wholly owned subsidiary of the Bear Stearns Companies Inc., authorized and regulated by the Financial Services Authority.