The 'Ideal Frontier Market' Opens Banking M&A Floodgates

There was a time when invitations from Libya's Colonel Ghadafi were discreetly declined, but emerging market investors are now increasingly drawn towards Libya, which Templeton Asset Management's Mark Mobius has rebranded 'the ideal frontier market'. This week, Libya invited foreign banks to submit applications to take minority interests in the country's banks. The Central Bank is planning to issue two licenses to foreign banks, which would have an ownership of up to 49% in the new banks with full management control. Criteria include: the banks must have Tier 1 capital of more than US$2bn and a credit rating of at

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