Dubai tycoon Hussain Sajwani resigns, makes $599m offer to take Damac private

Dubai tycoon Hussain Sajwani resigns, makes $599m offer to take Damac private

Dubai-based billionaire Hussain Sajwani offered to take over the rest of Damac Properties at a discount of nearly 45 per cent to the developer's local listing in 2015, the latest bid to buy out minority shareholders in the United Arab Emirates over the past year. Maple Invest Co Limited, an investment vehicle owned by Sajwani, offered Dhs2.2bn ($599m), making what it called "a voluntary conditional offer for the issued share capital of Damac not already owned by Maple and its affiliates,“ according to separate statements on Wednesday. Sajwani, who owns a 72 per cent stake in the developer, resigned as Damac's chairman to avoid conflict of interest. Damac traded below the Dhs1.3 per share offer price on Wednesday. The stock dropped as much as 6.2 per cent before paring its drop to 1.5 per cent at the close, valuing the entire company at Dhs7.74bn. Sluggish trading, a slump in prices and liquidity, and a desire to escape investor scrutiny have been driving efforts to take public companies private in Dubai. Emaar Properties said in March it will effectively delist one of its units for about two-thirds of its original public-offering price. Late last year, government-controlled Meraas Holding proposed taking DXB