September 22, 2008: Qatari Royal Buys Stake in Soon-to-Collapse Icelandic Bank

Mohammed bin Khalifa al-Thani, a member of the royal family of Qatar, pays $280.4 million for a 5% stake in the Icelandic Kaupthing Bank (see February 22, 2008). The bank’s shares have been falling on Iceland’s stock exchange, down 57% in the last twelve months, and the bank has been buying them back itself in an attempt to boost its stock price. The purchase makes al-Thani the third largest shareholder in the bank. [Forbes, 9/22/2008] Seventeen days later, the bank will be on the verge of collapse and will be seized by the government of Iceland. [Reuters, 10/9/2008]