Oman’s second-largest bank pursues merger with smaller rival

DUBAI, United Arab Emirates (AP) — Oman’s second-largest bank is pursuing a potential merger with its smaller rival, potentially creating a lender with just under $20 billion in assets. That’s according to regulatory filings made on Tuesday. The filings on the Muscat Stock Exchange show Bank Dhofar’s interest in its smaller rival, Ahli Bank. Bank Dhofar has over $11 billion in assets, while Ahli has under $8 billion. Ahli said it would study Bank Dhofar’s offer. Bahrain’s Ahli United Bank owns over a third of Oman’s Ahli Bank. Stock in Bank Dhofar rose over 3% in trading Tuesday on the Muscat Securities Market, to more than 40 cents a share.