Al Rifai International has completed a $15 million capital increase through a private placement of shares.

The offering attracted both local and regional investors who fully subscribed to the offering.

MedSecurities Investments, a wholly owned subsidiary of BankMed sal, acted as exclusive placement agent. ProFinance International, which has acted as financial advisor to the company over the last couple of years, acted as financial advisor and arranger on the transaction.

Al Rifai intends to utilise the private placement proceeds primarily to finance the growth of its nuts and kernels business in the Lebanese and international markets and to invest in additional resources and equipment to improve product quality and efficiency. Al Rifai  also intends to invest part of the proceeds in the development of  growing its coffee operations.

“For over 60 years the Rifai brand has achieved many key milestones which has helped in establishing its name among the most successful regional and now global players in the nuts and kernels business. Today’s announcement is another achievement for our company, supporting the creation of global brand, cementing its leadership in the sector and creating further value to our shareholders” said Mohamed Al Rifai, general manager of Al Rifai International Holding Ltd.

“We believe that this transaction will be a precedent for other strong brands in Lebanon and the region to come forward and open up their capital base,” added Khaled Zeidan, general manager of Securities and Structured products at MedSecurities.

“AL Rifai has succeeded in transforming a traditionally artisanal business into a state-of-the art automised operation, thereby enhancing quality standards and capacity and positioning it for strong global growth.  The company’s expansion into Europe has also allowed it to diversify its markets and spread its geographical risk,” stated Bernard Mouchbahani, managing partner of ProFinance International.-TradeArabia News Service