Kingston Capital is discussing selling AIR, the owning company of Al Fakher, to major tobacco companies.
British private equity firm Kingsway Capital is talking to tobacco companies as it prepares to sell its stake in Dubai-based tobacco business Advanced Inhalation Rituals (AIR), which owns shisha manufacturer Al Fakher.
Reuters said Kingsway, which is the majority owner of AIR, met with potential investors which included British American Tobacco (BAT) and Japan Tobacco (JT).
Kingsway hired Rothschild & Co in March to advise it on options for AIR, including a possible initial public offering (IPO) which would take place either on Saudi Arabia's Tadawul or the Abu Dhabi Securities Exchange.
In 2020 Kingsway paid over US$1.4 billion for Jordan-domiciled and Amman Stock Exchange-listed Al Eqbal Investment Company. The company was later rebranded as AIR. AIR’s most valuable business is Al Fakher, which manufactures flavored shisha molasses as well as OOKA, a pod-based device that replicates the shisha smoking experience without the use of charcoal.
An investment in AIR would provide access to the shisha and e-shisha market in the Middle East and beyond.