London - Abraaj
Group, the private-equity firm that invests across emerging markets, is
interested in buying Barclays Group’s African business, CEO Arif Naqvi said.
“It’s a
very fine bank run by a very fine management team, and if the opportunity were
to re-present itself, we would certainly be one of those that would be at the
table,” Naqvi said in an interview at the World Economic Forum in Davos on
Tuesday. The two companies aren’t currently in talks, he said.
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Naqvi’s
comments may signal renewed interest in bidding for a chunk of Barclays’
remaining 50.1 percent stake in the unit after the London-based bank said last
March that it plans to sell down its 62 percent stake over two to three years.
Abraaj and a group of investors had previously planned to bid for a minority
stake in Barclays Africa, people with knowledge of the discussions said last
year, though those talks later faltered, people familiar said.
Other investor
groups have also expressed interest in building a stake in the business. South
African pension fund Public Investment Corporation was looking to form a group
made up of black shareholders to buy a stake, while Ex-Barclays CEO Bob Diamond
had also publicly expressed interest in a potential acquisition.
Capital position
The South
African Reserve Bank had cautioned potential investors that it wanted owners of
the country’s banks to have stability, deep pockets and long-term plans, saying
in May it would look negatively on a private-equity bid.
Barclays,
looking for ways to bolster its capital position, sold the first slice of its
controlling stake in Barclays Africa Group in May as part of a plan to cut its
holding to 20 percent or less. The bank sold 103.6 million shares for the
for Barclays declined to comment.
Barclays
Africa dropped 0.8 percent to R167.89 as of 1:41 p.m. in Johannesburg.
Naqvi also
said that Abraaj is raising an investment fund this year that will have a
global focus as the company seeks opportunities in defensive industries such as
health care and education. The firm has “a group of investors who have been
supportive of us all the way through the last few years,” he said.