National Commercial Bank (NCB), the largest Bank in Saudi Arabia by assets, announced the purchase of rival Samba Financial Group for $15 billion. This deal will be the largest in the banking sector since the beginning of 2020. It is expected to be closed in the first half of 2021. The combined Bank with assets of more than $220 billion will be the third in this indicator among financial institutions of the Gulf countries, its capitalization will exceed $46 billion. NCB will pay 28.45 Saudi riyals ($7.58) per Samba share, which values the entire Bank at 55.7 billion riyals. The deal will be paid for with NCB shares. As a result, NCB shareholders will own 67.4% of the combined Bank, while Samba shareholders will own 32.6%. The national welfare Fund of Saudi Arabia Public Investment Fund (PIF), which is the largest shareholder of both banks, will own 37.2% of the combined financial institution. The Saudi authorities continue to act in accordance with the plan to diversify the country's economy and reduce its dependence on the oil sector.
