Tunisian businessman Mehdi Tamarziste gains $1.6 million in four weeks from stake in UBCI

Tunisian businessman Mehdi Tamarziste’s stake in Tunis-based financial services provider Union Bancaire pour le Commerce et l’Industrie (UBCI) has risen in valule in recent weeks, as shares in the group surged on renewed buying interest after losing previous gains this year.

According to data tracked by Billionaires.Africa, Tamarziste’s stake in UBCI has increased in value by TND5.15 million ($1.6 million) in four weeks, owing to a single-digit surge in the shares of the financial services provider as investors and traders on the Tunis Stock Exchange continue to increase their stakes in companies with strong fundamentals.

UBCI is a leading commercial bank with 103 branches and 112 ATMs located in the heart of Tunisia’s economic center. The bank is a subsidiary of BNP Paribas, a French global banking organization that is Europe’s largest and the world’s seventh-largest in terms of assets.

Tamarziste, a prominent Tunisian businessman who serves on the bank’s board of directors, owns a significant 12.9-percent stake in the lender, totaling 2,588,159 shares. The market value of his shareholding in the banking group places him not only among the wealthiest investors on the Tunis Stock Exchange but also among the country’s richest men.

As of press time on July 8, shares of the Tunisian financial services provider were trading on the Tunis Stock Exchange for TND21.99 ($6.89) per share, unchanged from its opening price this morning, as investors continue to re-evaluate economic and financial data.

In recent times, the bank’s shares have increased from TND20 ($6.26) per share on June 20 to TND21.99 ($6.89) at the time of writing this report, representing a 9.95-percent gain for shareholders over the past 28 days.

The market value of Tamarziste’s stake in the banking group has increased from TND51.76 million ($16.21 million) on June 20 to TND56.91 million ($17.82 million) at the time of writing this report, owing to the single-digit percent increase in UBCI’s shares.

In total, the Tunisian businessman has made TND5.15 million ($1.6 million) in the past 28 days.

This places him ahead of other Tunisian businessmen and investors such as Habib Kamoun, Habib Essayeh, and Moncef Mzabi.