Abu Dhabi Three-Way Merger Turns Focus on `Last Bank Standing' - Bloomberg

Abu Dhabi Three-Way Merger Turns Focus on `Last Bank Standing' - Bloomberg:

A potential three-way bank merger in the United Arab Emirates is boosting the stock of a lender that’s not even involved in the deal: Abu Dhabi Islamic Bank PJSC.

ADIB’s shares climbed in high volumes as investors speculate that it will be the next to join the race to consolidate. The stock lagged behind only the two local competitors that might be soon announcing a deal to create the fifth-largest bank in the six-nation Gulf Cooperation Council.

“ADIB is the last bank standing, and there still remains some hope that it would be joining hands with someone else,” said Joice Mathew, the head of equity research at United Securities in Muscat. “Moreover, the merger news is taking the valuations of Abu Dhabi banks to higher levels, and ADIB is likely to play catch up here.”