Dubai Group, the leading diversified financial services company of Dubai Holding, said it has acquired 51 per cent of Acacia Real Estate Limited (Acacia), a Bahrain-based real estate investment company, through a capital increase.

Bahrain’s TAIB Bank is the principal founding shareholder of Acacia.

Dubai Group made the $76.9 million equity injection through its subsidiary, Dubai Ventures Group, to become the largest shareholder of Acacia. Dubai Ventures Group holds four seats on the company’s Board of Directors.

The investment will provide the group access to real estate deals, knowledge in structuring real estate financial products aimed at retail and institutional investors, as well as a network of partners across developed markets.

Abdulhakeem Kamkar, CEO, Dubai Ventures Group, said this was a strategic investment for Dubai Ventures Group as it seeks to expand its real estate portfolio across the Middle East and North Africa region, as well as other emerging markets.

"This strategic investment will further strengthen synergies across both organisations in terms of exchange of expertise, market knowledge, and invaluable contacts in the real estate industry. We look forward to working with Acacia’s management and other shareholders to create a platform that will generate increasing returns and add value to our investments," he noted.

Founded in December 2006, Acacia invests in income generating properties and select development projects in US, UK and Asia. It has assets under management worth over $1.4 billion.

The proceeds of Dubai Group’s capital increase will be used to expand Acacia’s portfolio to include real estate investments in emerging markets such as the GCC, Turkey, India, and South East Asia. It will also be used to capture attractive opportunistic deals in the US and UK.

Commenting on Dubai Ventures Group’s sizeable stake in Acacia, Iqbal G. Mamdani, member of the executive committee, Acacia’s Board of Directors said: "We’re privileged to establish this link with Dubai Group that firmly places us on the path of sustained growth."

"In addition to the tremendous synergies between us, we are confident Acacia’s well-established track record will enhance Dubai Ventures Group’s portfolio and augment its Asian footprint," he noted.

Kamkar pointed out that the investment was in line with Dubai Ventures Group’s mandate to acquire controlling stakes in real estate asset management businesses.

Earlier this year, the company acquired a 51 percent stake in KOP Capital, the Singapore-based real estate fund manager and developer, which focuses on high end residential and commercial developments in Asia Pacific.

Through KOP, Dubai Ventures Group acquired a 50 percent stake in Stien, a boutique hotel operator in Europe, Kamkar added.

Dubai Ventures Group creates and manages a diversified and rapidly expanding portfolio of direct and indirect investments in the emerging markets of Asia and the Middle East.

It focuses on investments in the capital markets, real estate and industrial sectors of the world’s most promising economies.

Its portfolio includes KOP Capital, Emirates Cement, Bharat Hotels, Time Broadband Television, Sun Hung Kai Financial, GBD Investment Limited, Chiranjjeevi Wind Energy Limited, and Emirates International Telecommunications.-TradeArabia News Service