Kuwait Finance & Investment Company (KFIC) has agreed a five-year restructuring of its KD145m ($498m) debt with its 22 lenders.  

The $498m debt has been rescheduled to be paid in four tranches, with the first tranche settled on 7 June and the last settled on 31 December 2014.   

The agreement also includes a commitment by shareholders to raise capital during 2010 and comprises one of the largest debt restructures in the Gulf’s private sector.

“By signing the agreement into effect today, KFIC now has an improved capital structure with a greater financial flexibility and freedom,” says KFIC chairman Saleh Al Homaizi. 

The agreement took 18 months to conclude and was coordinated by two lead arrangers, the National Bank of Kuwait and Bahrain’s Ahli United Bank (AUB).  

KFIC will soon be concluding an organisational restructure to absorb the new business model. Going forward, asset management will remain a core business line along with KFIC’s investment banking practice.