Mashreq confident of cases against Ahab and Saad

Dubai-based Mashreq Bank, which has lodged cases with the Dubai Courts' Commercial Court against Saudi family-owned firm Ahmad Hamad Algosaibi and Brothers Company (Ahab), and billionaire Maan Al Sanea and his Saad Trading for a combined Dh2 billion, is confident of its cases here as well in the US, a bank official toldEmirates Business.

"We are very confident of our case both here and in the US," the official said, adding the bank had filed the lawsuits "to recover the funds owed to Mashreq".

The bank, the largest in Dubai by market capitalisation (as of February 17, 2010), made provisions of Dh2.1bn for bad loans, including those to the Saudi family groups, in 2009, 480 per cent more than the Dh362 million it provisioned in 2008.

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