Islamic bank BLME to acquire SME-focused leasing business
(Reuters) - Bank of London and The Middle East (BLME) , one of Britain's five full-fledged Islamic banks, said on Monday it would acquire Renaissance Asset Finance as part of efforts to grow its leasing business.
Dubai-listed BLME said in a statement the acquisition would be finalised in early April, without disclosing a deal size.
The Islamic lender helped launch Renaissance in 2014 when it provided a financing line of 35 million pounds, with both firms seeking to fill a funding gap for mid-sized companies.
"Our two businesses share the joint objective of filling this funding gap, with BLME focusing on the mid-market and Renaissance targeting the smaller ticket end," said Fred Yue, head of leasing at BLME.
Renaissance offers financing solutions including sale and leaseback transactions, with a maximum advance of 2 million pounds.
Rental-based contracts are commonly used in Islamic finance, which follows religious principles such as a ban on interest and pure monetary speculation.
(Reporting by Bernardo Vizcaino; Editing by Eric Meijer)