Bank Dhofar SAOG and National Bank of Oman SAOG said they will initiate talks to weigh the possibility of a merger, subject to the approvals from the two companies' boards and regulators.

The two banks did not provide details about the timeline and the structure of a potential deal.

As of June-end, Bank Dhofar and National Bank of Oman have assets of 4.23 billion rials and 3.45 billion rials, respectively, according to data from S&P Global Market Intelligence.

As of July 30, US$1 was equivalent to 380 Omani baisa.