Skip to content Skip to Search
Skip navigation

Islamic finance

UAE’s first dirham T-sukuk gets bids worth $2.3bn

The UAE’s first AED1.1 billion ($299.6 million) dirham-denominated Islamic treasury sukuk (T-sukuk) was oversubscribed 7.6 times, getting bids worth AED8.3 billion ($2.26 billion). The strong demand was witnessed across both tranches, with a final allocation of AED 550 million for the two-year tranche, and AED 550 million for the three-year tranche, the ministry of finance […]

The bonds in various currencies are part of the Egyptian government’s efforts to diversify its financial strategy

UAE to sell first dirham T-sukuk worth nearly $300m

The UAE will sell AED1.1 billion ($299.6 million) of Islamic treasury sukuk (T-sukuk) for the first time in the local currency, state-run WAM news agency reported. The T-sukuk will be issued with tranches maturing in two, three and five years, followed by a 10-year bond at a later date. Mohamed bin Hadi Al Hussaini, minister […]

Ahli United Bank Manama

Mergers push Islamic banking forwards in Bahrain

Hundreds of Islamic banking executives are descending on Bahrain next month for the Islamic Finance Innovation Day on May 30. Under the patronage of the Central Bank of Bahrain, it will focus on embedding environmental, social and governance (ESG) investing into Islamic finance. The event comes as analysts predict that Islamic banking’s market share will […]

City, Cityscape, Urban

Dubai’s Damac mandates banks for $500m sukuk issue

Dubai-based Damac Real Estate Limited (Damac) has mandated banks to arrange investor meetings before a potential three-year benchmark US dollar-denominated sukuk worth at least $500 million. Investor calls and meetings were set to begin on Thursday and run to April 17, Reuters reported, citing a document from one of the mandated banks. Deutsche Bank, Emirates […]

IDBI Bank

No comment from Emirates NBD on bid for Indian bank

Emirates NBD, Dubai’s largest bank, declined to comment to AGBI on Thursday following reports that it is one of at least five potential bidders for a majority stake in India’s state-owned IDBI Bank.  Emirates NBD and its rival First Abu Dhabi are on the lookout for foreign acquisitions as the Gulf state’s domestic banking sector […]

Presight AI Abu Dhabi Securities Exchange bell ringing

Gulf IPO market could ride out global jitters with state offerings

A wave of initial public offerings in Abu Dhabi shows little sign of abating, despite global market jitters and rising interest rates as investors bet on the emirate’s part-privatisation drive. While Saudi Arabia and Dubai’s bourses have also offered a flurry of new listings over the past 18 months, it’s the UAE capital that is […]

Bahrain’s sukuk and bond order book hits $7.8bn

Bahrain has tightened guidance for its US dollar-denominated sukuk (Islamic bonds) and conventional bonds after it received combined orders of over $7.8 billion for the debt sale. Guidance was tightened to around 6.5 percent for the seven-year sukuk and 7.75-7.875 percent for the 12-year notes, Reuters reported, citing the document from one of the arranging […]

India says connecting its power grid to Saudi Arabia and the UAE will help it supply power to Europe

PIF-backed Saudi Electricity plans sale of dollar sukuk

Saudi Electricity Company is planning to issue a green or conventional sukuk (Islamic bonds) denominated in US dollars. The banks will hold meetings with fixed-income investors starting Friday (March 31), the company said in a statement to the Saudi bourse. The issuance amount will be determined later based on market conditions and requirements. The company […]

Shop, Convention Center, Building

Saudi’s Al Rajhi Bank to raise $1bn via sustainable sukuk

Saudi Arabia’s Al Rajhi Bank is set to raise $1 billion with five-year sustainable Islamic bonds, according to a media report. The spread on the sukuk was set at 110 basis points (bps) over US Treasuries (UST), tightened from initial price guidance of around 150 bps over UST after demand topped $3.75 billion, Reuters reported, […]

Abu Dhabi wealth fund Mubadala has $276bn in assets under management

Saudi’s Al Rajhi Bank plans dollar sustainable sukuk

Al Rajhi Bank is planning to issue US dollar-denominated sustainable Islamic bond, as part of its international sukuk programme launched last year. Al Rajhi Capital, Citigroup Global Markets Limited, Emirates NBD, Goldman Sachs, HSBC, JPMorgan, KFH Capital and Standard Chartered are joint lead managers and bookrunners for the sukuk issuance, the Saudi-listed bank said in […]

Emirates NBD

A first as Dubai bank prices $600m sukuk for US firm

Emirates NBD, Dubai’s largest bank, has successfully priced a $600 million sukuk for New York-listed Air Lease Corporation. It marks the first sukuk issued by a US corporation. A sukuk is a Sharia-compliant financial certificate, similar to a bond in Western finance but that complies with Islamic religious law. The five-year sukuk saw robust demand, […]

Asian Agri's Buatan oil palm plantation in Riau, Indonesia. Apical is one of the largest exporters of refined palm oil in the country

Top Gulf banks help raise $787m in sustainable credits

Two leading Gulf banks have helped arrange nearly $800 million in sustainability-linked loans for a leading agricultural producer based in Singapore, as local institutions prioritise green lending in their portfolios.  First Abu Dhabi Bank (FAB), the UAE’s largest bank by assets, and National Bank of Kuwait, the country’s biggest financial institution, acted as lead arrangers, […]

People, Person, Woman

PIF’s $5.5bn green bond sets tone for ‘strong pipeline’ in Mena

Saudi Arabia’s sovereign Public Investment Fund has raised $5.5 billion through its latest green bond issuance, supporting expectations of a strong year for sustainable bonds in the Middle East.  The issuance was more than six times oversubscribed – with books exceeding $33 billion – and will be used to finance or refinance eligible green projects, […]

Majid Al Futtaim opening a new Carrefour centre in Dubai in 2017. The group has collaborated with Standard Chartered on several green initiatives

UAE tops international ranking for green finance commitment

The UAE has been recognised for its commitment to financing a green and sustainable future. The Gulf state recorded the highest scores among several key markets in the Financial Services: State of the Nation Survey 2022, which spoke to 758 managers at financial institutions and banks across France, Germany, Hong Kong, Singapore, the UK, the […]

Dubai Islamic Bank’s profit rises 26% to $1.5bn in 2022

Dubai Islamic Bank’s (DIB) net profit rose 26 percent year-on-year to AED5.55 billion ($1.51 billion) in 2022 due to higher revenue, prudent cost management and sustained lower impairments. Chairman Mohammed Ibrahim Al Shaibani revealed that DIB achieved its strongest year in its history as total income reached AED14 billion, a 20 percent YoY growth and […]

Exempt offer sukuks have become more popular in the past five years

Saudi SMEs look to sharia funding to balance cash flow

In Saudi Arabia, small to medium-sized companies are increasingly turning to sharia-compliant funding to raise money for their businesses. But rather than borrow from banks, these SMEs instead rely on the kingdom’s nascent fintech sector to obtain bridging loans, invoice financing and other kinds of niche financial support. “SMEs are underserved by the banking sector, […]

MAF clinches $1.25bn sustainability-linked loan

UAE-based retail group Majid Al Futtaim (MAF) has secured its second sustainability-linked loan as part of its strategy to become ‘net carbon positive’ by 2040. The $1.25 billion-equivalent revolving credit facility with First Abu Dhabi Bank was agreed on Monday. MAF, which owns and operates 29 shopping malls across the Middle East and Africa as […]

Arabs invest

Younger Arabs invest in equity markets, tech and Islamic finance

Nearly three-quarters of rich young Arabs believe equity markets will continue to perform well and are actively planning to invest, with regional entities, Islamic finance, technology and sustainability their key priorities. Geneva-headquartered global wealth and asset management company Lombard Odier surveyed around 200 high net worth individuals with assets of at least $1 million across […]

Dubai International Financial Centre

Calculating hyperinflation is ‘top priority’ for Islamic banks

Islamic banking’s top rule maker is racing to create a new accounting standard to calculate the impact of hyperinflation. Changes to sharia-compliant accounting practices could make some account holders liable for banks’ losses related to soaring prices.  Under IFRS accounting standards, which are commonly used worldwide, there is a clause, IAS 29, that covers hyperinflation. […]