Qatar's Barwa Bank to buy The First Investor

DUBAI, Jan 17 (Reuters) - Qatar's Barwa Bank, a unit of Barwa Real Estate, on Sunday said it will purchase The First Investor, a Doha-based investment firm, in an all-stock deal.

Barwa Bank said the deal, which already has the approval of Qatar's central bank, would see the lender acquire the share capital of The First Investor in exchange for Barwa stock.

(Reporting by Amran Abocar; Editing by John Irish) Keywords: BARWA FIRSTINVESTOR/ ([e-mail]; [phone]; Reuters Messaging: [e-mail]) COPYRIGHT Copyright Thomson Reuters 2010. All rights reserved. The copying, republication or redistribution of Reuters News Content, including by framing or similar means, is expressly prohibited without the prior written consent of Thomson Reuters.