Abu Dhabi fund Aabar Investments shares slide after board approves July vote to go private

Aabar shares fall after it OKs vote to go private

DUBAI, United Arab Emirates — Shares of the Abu Dhabi investment fund with the largest stake in German automaker Daimler are down over 5 percent in early trading after its board called for a vote to take the firm private.

Aabar Investments said in a regulatory filing posted Sunday that its board approved plans to hold the shareholder vote July 26. It first floated the possibility of going private early last week.

The company says the move is “essential” and will give it “greater operational flexibility” as it pursues additional investments.

The fast-growing company is unusual among oil wealth-backed Gulf funds in that it sells some shares to the public. Going private would allow Aabar to disclose less information than it does now.