Swicorp, a top private equity firm based in Riyadh, has announced the successful sale of a 20 per cent stake in Ghani Glass, a leading glass manufacturer in Pakistan, held by its unit Joussour Holding Company.

Founded in 1987 and licensed by the Capital Market Authority of Saudi and the Dubai Financial Service Authority, Swicorp plays a key role in the equity markets of Mena region and Turkey.

The Saudi-based company has an extensive track record of pioneering merger and acquisitions and advisory transactions across the Mena region for the last 25 years.

JHC is a private equity investment vehicle managed by Swicorp that invests in energy and energy intensive industries.

Set up in 1993, Ghani Glass is Pakistan's largest and most diversified glass manufacturer. Since JHC's initial investment in 2007, the glass maker posted strong growth, more than doubling its top, bottom line on back of capacity expansions, including  commissioning  of the first pharma glass manufacturing project in the region, based on European technology.

JHC's original investment in Ghani Glass was predicated on strong underlying demand fundamentals in Pakistan, where demand expanded at double digits rates over the last several years, said a statement from Swicorp.

Following the global crisis and deteriorating economic, political conditions in Pakistan, coupled with its severe energy crisis, JHC worked closely with Ghani Glass to maintain and defend its top position, while at the same time scaling down regional expansion plans.

Salman Malik, the director at Swicorp said, 'During the life of investment, we worked with our counterparts at Ghani Glass to ensure the firm maintains and extends leadership in the glass market in Pakistan while continuing to establish a broader regional footprint; this through a period during which we had to endure extremely challenging conditions.'

Nabil Triki, the Swicorp head of private equity said, 'When we invested in Ghani Glass five years ago, our ambition was to significantly grow its top and bottom line and allow the company to establish a footprint beyond the borders of Pakistan.'

'Although faced with challenging local and international markets, the company was able to navigate through consecutive crises and we are satisfied we were able to contribute directly to profitability growth through several initiatives championed by our teams, he added.

Swicorp, which has its headquarters in Riyadh, has developed into one of the leading players in the private equity sector in the region, raising over $1 billion in private equity funds from investors since 2004.

From its regional offices in Jeddah, Geneva, Tunis, and Dubai, Swicorp provides a wide range of corporations and investors with independent advice and assistance on key strategic and financial issues.-TradeArabia News Service