Saudi Arabia's sovereign wealth fund, the Public Investment Fund (PIF) which holds $430 billion of assets under management, is considering buying Dubai-listed interior design and speciality contractor Depa to fit-out hotels under construction in the kingdom, said a report.

 

Should a deal be reached, an offer would be made to Depa's biggest shareholders and the firm would be taken private, reported Reuters, citing one of the sources.

 

A major player in the region, Depa had been part of top Dubai projects including the Burj Khalifa, the world's tallest skyscraper, and Dubai's Atlantis resort.

 

The company had reported a loss attributable to shareholders of AED484.8 million ($132 million) in 2020, after losing AED409.1 million the previous year. It blamed the 2020 loss on the insolvency of a major client and restructuring of its Asia unit, said the Reuters report.

 

If the Depa deal goes through, it would be the third delisting from Dubai's market this year, after Dubai parks operator DXB Entertainments delisted from the Dubai Financial Market and Dubai ports operator DP World left Nasdaq Dubai, stated the report.

 

Depa has a free float of almost 40% and market capitalisation of about $36 million, according to Refinitiv data. Its shares are down almost 19% this year.

 

The Dubai fit-out specialist has reavealed that it planned divestments, including German interior firm Vedder, as part of a plan that has reduced its fixed cost base by more than AED160 million.