NBK Capital announced today the successful sale of its stake in Sama Educational Company KSCC (“SAMA”) which manages and operates a diversified portfolio of educational assets serving the K-12 market. The investment was made through the firm’s Kuwait Investment Opportunities Fund (“KIOF”) and this represents the culmination of a multitude of initiatives that have resulted in strong growth and operational excellence for SAMA over the last five years.
SAMA was established with a capital base of KD 15 million, and aimed to target niche educational needs in the secondary school (K-12) levels by providing the highest level of quality education whilst maintaining a gender segregated educational environment. The Company with the help of NBK Capital’s Kuwait Investment Opportunities Fund (“KIOF”) was able to double its capacity, and to increase the student count from approximately 2,400 to over 4,000 at exit. SAMA has grown to become one of the largest operators of K-12 schools offering the American curriculum in Kuwait.
Dr. Anwar Al Mudhaf, CEO of Al Razzi Holding Company which acquired the asset believes that SAMA is poised for further growth and plans to further invest in its academic excellence, ‘Our development plan includes diversifying the sources of operating income through acquisitions of shares in companies that are in promising sectors such as health services, which continues to enjoy a high growth targeted at maximizing the return on shareholder’s equity. This plan is expected to raise the profitability of Al Razzi Holding by not less than 70% of net profit by the end of the fiscal year’. Dr.Al Mudhaf further added, ‘We continue to believe in the importance of enhancing the quality of services within the educational sectors and this will be illustrated by further development of institutes such as SAMA’. He also extended his gratitude to the Al Razzi staff, encouraging them to continue their efforts in expanding and upgrading the level of service excellence within the education sector.
Faisal Al-Hamad, Executive Director at NBK Capital stated: “We are proud that the collaboration between the KIOF and the National Offset Company enabled SAMA to significantly increase its Kuwaiti student count and to upgrade its offering by expanding its facilities and enhancing its IT infrastructure. We were able to offer Kuwait’s youth the best academic environment whilst generating healthy returns to our investors. ”
