Unicorn announces US$25m capital raising for TMG via private placement
KUWAIT CITY, Kuwait, Sept. 27, 2006 — Teshkeel Media Group, KSC (TMG) announced today a comprehensive agreement with Unicorn Investment Bank (UIB) to advise and lead a second phase of capital raising. The agreement was announced by Majid Al-Sayed Bader Al-Refai, Managing Director and CEO of UIB, and Naif Al-Mutawa, CEO of TMG.
UIB will underwrite and assist TMG in the raising of US$25 million for the offering. TMG’s current investor base includes large GCC institutions – the Commercial Bank of Kuwait, Bayan Investment Company, Safat Investment Company, Al-Aswak Company and retail group MH Shaya Company – as well as a consortium of private investors from the United States, Mexico, China, Saudi Arabia, Jordan, Lebanon, Egypt and Kuwait.
Headquartered in Kuwait, TMG develops and publishes comics and other children’s entertainment for the Arab speaking world. They are the exclusive Arabic translation partners of Marvel Entertainment, Archie Comics and DC Comics for the Middle East and North Africa and have developed and launched their own award-winning series, ‘The 99,’ incorporating the world’s first group of superheroes based on Islamic culture. Stories are woven around 99 characters endowed with Islamic traits, with each character personifying a particular Islamic attribute. The series has received critical acclaim from the international media including the New York Times, the Washington Post, the Wall Street Journal and the Guardian.
Yasser Abbady, Director of Corporate Finance at UIB, commented, "TMG has identified and successfully developed unique content for the young, highlighting Islam’s rich culture and heritage. With a substantial proportion of the region’s population under the age of fifteen, TMG’s management vision coupled with their award-winning concept of ‘The 99′ makes this a very attractive investment indeed."
Naif Al-Mutawa, CEO of TMG, said, "We’re extremely excited and proud to be working with a world class Islamic investment bank such as Unicorn. Unicorn fits our company needs at an operational level, a Sharia-compliant level and a cultural level. It is an added boost to ‘The 99′ superheroes."
"This Ramadan, the world has new heroes," he added.
Notes to Editors
About Teshkeel Media Group, KSC
Teshkeel Media Group, KSC is one of the Middle East’s leading developers of comics and children’s entertainment. Based in Kuwait, and with offices in New York, the Company’s mission is to fill a significant void in positive, high-quality children’s content in the region, including in print and electronic media, film and television. In addition to working with global publishers, TMG is also developing its own properties, including its new superhero concept, ‘The 99,’ which it launched in the region in 2006.
Websites:
http://www.teshkeelcomics.com and http://www.the99.org
About Unicorn Investment Bank
-- Unicorn Investment Bank commenced operations on 5 May 2004 in the Kingdom of Bahrain. -- In its first eight months of business, UIB achieved revenues of US$36.4m and a net profit of US$17.1m. -- In 2005 (its second year of operation), UIB reported full year revenues of US$52.6m and a net profit of US$24.2m. -- Unicorn recently announced half-year results for the six months ended June 30, 2006 of US$43.4m revenues and US$23.8m net profit. -- UIB has also doubled its capital to US$233 million following a successful round of fund raising in July 2006. -- UIB has achieved a number of "firsts" in Islamic banking. In November 2005, the Bank closed the "KSA Real Estate Fund-1," the first-ever equity fund to allow non-Saudi nationals to invest in the growing Saudi Arabian property market via an innovative financial and legal structure. -- UIB began raising capital in May 2006 for a US$150m Sharia-compliant private equity fund to target private equity investments globally, the world's first global Islamic private equity fund. The Fund will invest in selected geographical locations and sectors in order to benefit from cyclical upturns around the globe while diversifying risk. -- In May 2006, UIB launched "Gulf Springs," the first pan-GCC real estate fund, in partnership with leading real-estate developers in each GCC market, who as founding investors, bring local knowledge and investment opportunities. -- UIB has recently closed "KSA MBS 1 International Sukuk," the GCC's first Sharia-compliant asset-backed security: a debt product designed for home financing companies in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (akin to a mortgage-backed security) in partnership with a multilateral organization and underwritten by a global institution. -- Since its inception, UIB has already advised, structured and successfully placed deals with a total value in excess of US$1 billion.
Website:
http://www.unicorninvestmentbank.com
Media contacts:
Unicorn Investment Bank:
Mark Lunn of Gavin Anderson & Co, London
Bahrain Tel: +973 17 566 000
UK Tel: +44 (0) 20 7554 1400
UK Mobile: +44 (0) 7775 992 309
George Tucker of Gavin Anderson & Co, London
Bahrain Tel: +973 17 566 000
UK Tel: +44 (0) 20 7554 1400
UK Mobile: +44 (0) 7917 218 951
Teshkeel Media Group, KSC:
Dr. Naif Al-Mutawa
965-961-8666
