Watania

Watania, formally known as National Takaful Company PJSC, is a takaful insurance company based in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates. Its business is built around Islamic insurance principles and uses the wakala model, in which the operator manages participants' insurance arrangements for a defined fee rather than operating as a conventional risk-transfer insurer. The company provides general takaful and health takaful products, serving customers in the United Arab Emirates. The company was established in 2011 by a consortium of Abu Dhabi-linked financial, insurance, energy, and property interests: Abu Dhabi National Islamic Finance, Abu Dhabi National Insurance Company, TAQA, and Aldar Properties. Its formation reflected the development of the United Arab Emirates' Islamic-finance and takaful sectors, where specialist providers were created to offer insurance products structured in accordance with Sharia principles. At launch, approximately 55 percent of Watania's shares were offered to the public through an initial public offering. The offering was reported to have been oversubscribed by approximately seven times, indicating strong investor demand at the time of flotation. Watania subsequently began operating through a physical branch network, opening branches in Abu Dhabi and Dubai during the two years following its establishment. A major ownership change occurred in 2014, when Oman-based conglomerate MB Holding acquired a 60.5 percent stake in Watania through two subsidiaries, one of which was Al Madina Takaful. This transaction made MB Holding the controlling shareholder according to the available historical account and connected Watania with a broader regional takaful and financial-services network. Watania's documented product scope consists of general takaful and health takaful. General takaful covers non-life insurance needs, although the supplied sources do not identify the company's individual policy categories or product names. Health takaful addresses medical-insurance needs through an Islamic insurance framework. The available material does not provide sufficient current information to establish Watania's present ownership, leadership, website, financial performance, market share, or whether it remains active under the same corporate structure. Those aspects therefore remain unconfirmed in this dossier.

Watania was created in 2011 as National Takaful Company PJSC in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates. Its founding group comprised Abu Dhabi National Islamic Finance, Abu Dhabi National Insurance Company, TAQA, and Aldar Properties. The combination brought together Islamic finance, conventional insurance, energy, and property-sector investors in the creation of a specialist takaful operator. The company raised capital through an initial public offering in which roughly 55 percent of its shares were floated. The offering was reported to have been approximately seven times oversubscribed. This level of subscription reflected the contemporary interest in Islamic financial products and in new publicly offered companies in the United Arab Emirates, although the available reference material does not provide the offering date, issue price, proceeds, or subsequent share performance. Following its formation, Watania established an operating presence in the UAE through branches in Abu Dhabi and Dubai. These locations were opened over the two years after the company's creation, giving the insurer a presence in both the capital and the country's principal commercial centre. Watania operated according to the wakala model and focused on general and health takaful rather than conventional insurance products. In 2014, ownership changed materially when MB Holding, an Oman-based conglomerate, acquired a 60.5 percent interest in Watania. The stake was purchased through two subsidiaries, including Al Madina Takaful. The transaction represented a shift from the original founding-investor structure toward control by a regional conglomerate with interests connected to takaful and other businesses. The supplied sources do not document later corporate developments in sufficient detail. They do not establish Watania's current ownership, leadership, financial condition, product catalogue, branch network, regulatory status, or whether the brand continues to operate independently. Accordingly, the historical record in this entry ends with the 2014 ownership transaction and treats the company's present status as unconfirmed.

• 2014

  MB Holding acquired majority stake

  [1]Wataniaen.wikipedia.org

  MB Holding acquired a 60.5 percent interest in Watania through two subsidiaries, including Al Madina Takaful.

• 2013

  Abu Dhabi and Dubai branches opened

  [1]Wataniaen.wikipedia.org

  The company opened branches in Abu Dhabi and Dubai during the two years following its creation; the source does not identify the individual opening dates.

• 2011

  Company established

  [1]Wataniaen.wikipedia.org

  National Takaful Company, known as Watania, was created in Abu Dhabi by Abu Dhabi National Islamic Finance, Abu Dhabi National Insurance Company, TAQA, and Aldar Properties.

• Initial public offering

  [1]Wataniaen.wikipedia.org

  Approximately 55 percent of the company's shares were floated in an initial public offering that was reported to be about seven times oversubscribed. The supplied source does not specify the year.

A United Arab Emirates provider of Sharia-compliant insurance using the wakala takaful model, with coverage focused on general and health insurance.

• Insurance

  General takaful

  Watania's general takaful business covers non-life insurance needs under an Islamic insurance structure. The company operates using the wakala model, but the supplied sources do not identify the individual classes of general coverage, policy names, eligibility rules, or distribution channels.

• Health insurance

  Health takaful

  Health takaful is Watania's medical-insurance offering within its Sharia-compliant product range. It is intended to address health-coverage needs through the takaful framework, although the available reference does not provide details about benefits, networks, plan tiers, or current availability.

• 2014

  Majority ownership transaction with MB HoldingM&A

  Background

  Watania had originally been created by a group of UAE-based founding investors and had floated approximately 55 percent of its shares through an initial public offering.

  Action taken

  MB Holding acquired a 60.5 percent stake through two subsidiaries, including Al Madina Takaful.

  Aftermath

  The transaction made MB Holding the controlling shareholder according to the available historical source. Later ownership and operating consequences are not documented in the supplied material.

  Source

1. 1Wataniaen.wikipedia.org