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Saudi Arabia’s Jabal Omar Development plans to raise 4 billion riyals (Dh3.91 billion or $1.06 billion) with local currency sukuk issues. Bank Al Bilad has been hired to arrange the fund-raising, but other banks are likely to have leading roles too. The developer’s flagship project, Jabal Omar, is within walking distance of the Holy Mosque in Makkah. It includes commercial malls, residential units and hotels over an area of 230,000 square metres. Saudi Arabia’s real estate sector was hit hard last year, with prices declining 8.7%, as a result of the government’s austerity measures after a slump in international oil prices. Jabal Omar missed in January last year the first repayment, worth 650 million riyals. It amended the terms of the loan in February 2016 to postpone the date, the first payment on the facility is now due in 2019 and the loan will mature in 2024. Jabal Omar has also borrowed 4 billion riyals in February 2015, then 8 billion riyals in September 2015. It is not clear whether the planned sukuk would be used as new funding or to refinance some of the company’s existing debt.

Capital Intelligence Ratings has affirmed the credit ratings of Tadhamon International Islamic Bank (TIIB), based in Sana'a, Yemen. The Bank’s Long- and Short-Term Foreign Currency Ratings (FCRs) are both maintained at 'C', reflecting the volatile operating environment and devastated economy. TIIB has confirmed to CI Ratings that it is not currently in default of any obligations. All ratings remain on a 'Negative' Outlook. The rating is supported by adequate liquidity. Real estate and other investments outside of Yemen represent around 40% of the balance sheet. The Support Rating is adjusted to '5' from '4' based on the low likelihood of support from shareholders and the authorities, and their ability to provide timely assistance.

Abu Dhabi Islamic Bank (ADIB) plans to continue its current strategy based on prudence in risk management, coupled with innovation in customer experience and products. This approach is working: over the past two years, ADIB has attracted more than 100,000 new retail customers, taking its total to more than 950,000. In the first half of 2017, net profits rose more than 14.1% year-on-year to $307m. Total revenues reached $757m, up 4.1%. CEO Khamis Buharoon says the bank has now a balanced customer base, across Abu Dhabi, Dubai and the northern emirates, comprising UAE nationals, as well as Arab, Asian and Western expatriates. A number of new additions to ADIB’s range of retail and wholesale banking services are planned. According to Buharoon, ADIB's individual and corporate customer base will continue to grow and key factors remain digitisation and automation in branches.

Socially responsible investment (SRI) and Islamic finance share significant common ground. Both spheres of investment demand the businesses chosen for investment are socially useful, not detrimental to humanity, and compliant with humanitarian ethics. SEDCO Capital has incorporated the Sharia-compliant investment approach with its responsible investment strategy and created the concept of prudent ethical investing (PEI). At the heart of PEI lie the environmental, social and governance criteria (ESG) that are integrated into financial analyses. SEDCO Capital is not only Sharia-compliant but also evaluates ESG aspects as part of its investment process. PEI is merging these two forces to embrace a more sustainable economic development model that is expected to attract non-Muslim SRI investors into the Islamic finance market.

Abu Dhabi Global Market (ADGM) and KPMG have come together to launch the first FinTech Abu Dhabi Innovation Challenge on Oct. 22. The Innovation Challenge includes an intensive five-week program for innovative and mature start-ups to conceptualize and present market-ready solutions that address real business challenges in the Middle East, Africa and South Asia (MEASA) region. During the program, 10 finalist teams will work divided into six focus areas: Financial and Investment Management, Financial Inclusion, RegTech, Trade Finance, InsurTech and Private Capital Markets.The finalists will showcase their solutions at the FinTech Demo Day in Abu Dhabi to a panel of industry experts. Each finalist will benefit from mentoring sessions and fast-tracked consideration for admission to ADGM’s Regulatory Laboratory (RegLab) program. They will also win a $15,000 cash stipend to cover any costs associated with travel matters and accommodation.

Abu Dhabi Islamic Bank (ADIB) has been awarded for its commitment to corporate social responsibility (CSR) from the regional CSR Network Consultancy, a member of the United Nations Global Compact initiative. The award was presented to Mohammed Al Fahim, Regional Head of Corporate Banking at ADIB. ADIB has a proven track record of CSR initiatives, including launching blood donation campaigns, sponsoring mass weddings and organising a range of activities during Ramadan. The bank adopted design principles aimed at minimising both energy and water inputs and waste outputs. In addition, ADIB Future’s Champions League was a recipient of the Gold Prize for the Best Sports CSR Initiative, and Bronze winner in the Youth Development Project of the Year at the 2017 Sports Industry Awards. ADIB also maintained its commitment to recruit, develop and promote local talent through its youth development programme.

The recent move by Dana Gas to declare its approximately US$700 million of outstanding trust certificates unlawful has been a troubling development for the Islamic finance industry. Dana Gas has initiated proceedings in the UAE to declare the sukuk illegal and has secured a series of injunctions preventing enforcement by creditors, but the key question remains unanswered. That is whether non-compliance with Shari'a principles would have any bearing on the legal enforceability of these instruments. Any judgment in favour of Dana Gas could have wide ranging implications on the sukuk market. White & Case LLP argue that the concept of Shari'a-compliance should be treated as distinct from legal enforceability. Dar Al Sharia Legal & Financial Consultancy issued a pronouncement on the Shari'a-compliance of Dana Gas' sukuk at the time the sukuk were issued. Pronouncements of such nature are generally not open to retroactive invalidation as is being sought by Dana Gas.

United Arab Emirates (UAE) regulators are setting out to establish a framework to guide the small business (SMB) crowdfunding market. Reports noted that regulators are aiming to promote innovation and a broadening of small business activity. Equity crowdfunding is expected to provide $93 billion to small- and medium-sized enterprises by 2020, reports added. In the UAE, SMBs stand to gain significantly from that trend, as these businesses make up an estimated 85% of all UAE companies. In Dubai, that number is even higher, at nearly 95% of all businesses. Meanwhile, research from the Khalifa Fund for Enterprise Development found that as many as 70% of small business loan applications in the UAE are rejected by traditional banks. Ian Johnston, Chief Executive of the Dubai International Financial Services Authority (DFSA), said the DFSA was the first in the GCC region to formalize a tailored regime for loan and investment crowdfunding platforms, which represent an important source of financing for the SME sector.

Abu Dhabi government-owned Al Hilal Bank has raised $100 million through a private placement of sukuk. The issue, led by First Abu Dhabi Bank, has a two-year maturity and offers 90 basis points over three-month London Interbank Offered Rate. The bank issued a privately placed $225 million sukuk in June last year, describing the deal as the first private placement of sukuk by a United Arab Emirates financial institution. That sukuk matures in January 2019, while the new $100 million issue is due on Aug. 14 of the same year. Al Hilal Bank is rated A1 by Moody's and A+ by Fitch Ratings.

The Malaysian company Farad launched its Farad cryptoken at the Dubai International Financial Centre (DIFC) on Monday. The CEO of Farad, Wan Hasni, said this was the first cryptocurrency backed by real-economy activity. The Farad cryptoken (FRD) is a digital currency, with each token representing the rights to the forward purchase contract of 80,000,000 ultra-capacitor cells produced by a Chinese company over a period of 36 months. According to company documents, at the time of initial coin offering (ICO), 1 FRD will be equivalent to $12.50. The pre-sale ICO will happen on August 25, and then on September 15 the full sale will begin. Around 1.2 billion FRD will be issued in the ICO, half during the pre-sale and half at the full sale, for a 10% premium. The ICO will be followed by roadshows in Asia and Europe to promote the business.

Abu Dhabi Global Market (ADGM) has announced two new partnerships with non-profit organizations from London and Zurich. The first alliance is with the Swiss Finance and Technology Association (SFTA). The second one is the British think tank Responsible Finance and Investment Foundation (RFI). The Swiss partnership will strengthen the collaboration between local FinTech businesses and will provide new opportunities for knowledge transfer. ADGM also signed an agreement with the London-based RFI. Both parties will work together to assist young FinTech entrepreneurs in testing and introducing innovative products under the ADGM Reglab program. In addition to that, RFI and ADGM will also set up an open platform to share knowledge and expertise. According to Blake Goud, the CEO of RFI, FinTech can have a leading role in transforming the way Islamic institutions connect with their clients. In his view, this partnership can encourage and support emerging FinTech companies to adopt ethical, responsible and Islamic approaches.

The Capital Market Authority (CMA) authorised Moody's Investors Service to conduct credit rating activities in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. Managing Director Monica Merli welcomed the announcement, emphasizing the Kingdom's increasing prominence in the debt capital markets. Saudi Arabia is a key market for Islamic finance, an area in which Moody's is recognised as a global thought leader through ratings, research and speaking engagements at leading conferences. The Kingdom completed the world's largest ever inaugural Sukuk issuance at $9 billion in April 2017, a transaction rated A1 by Moody's. Moody's currently rates 140 issuers and 92 debt programmes across the Middle East, including leading coverage in rating Islamic financial institutions and Sukuk.

The Qatar Islamic Bank aims to boost its deposit base by offering certificates of deposit in Qatari riyals and US$, after it was hit by an outflow of money due to sanctions against Qatar by its neighbouring Gulf countries. The bank said this weekend, that it was offering 1 and 2 year CDs in its 2nd series of such papers. Its first series was launched End of 2015. Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates and Bahrain cut diplomatic and transport ties with Qatar beginning of June this year, accusing the country of supporting terrorism. This prompted some firms and individuals from those states to pull money out of the Qatari banks. As a result, deposits in the Qatari banks shrank 1.8 % from the previous month in June. Qatar Islamic Bank was particularly hard hit, with its customer deposits falling to US$26.6 billion at end of June, according to its financial statements.

The standoff between Dana Gas PJSC and its bondholders carries on after the company that’s trying to void $700 million of its own debt was said to believe investors may even have to pay the company.
Dana Gas says a court battle with holders of the Islamic securities, or sukuk, may see it having to return less than 10 % of the amount it borrowed. In a second scenario, it believes creditors may have to pay it as much as $150 million, and that the case may last more than 10 years. The Gas company had announced plans to restructure the debt in May, this week retracted an offer to replace the bonds and is pursuing a resolution in court. It said in June the debt was no longer Sharia-compliant. Investors questioned the validity of the claim since neither sukuk regulations nor UAE laws governing the matter have changed since they were issued in 2013.

According to officials, Sharjah does‘nt have immediate plans for a sukuk, contrary to previous media reports. These had suggested that Sharjah had hired HSBC for a US dollar sukuk programme which could happen in the 4th quarter of 2017.
But, Tom Koczwara, Director, Debt Management Office, Finance Department at Government of Sharjah reiterated that the situation is still the same as in early May. “There is currently no immediate plan for a further sukuk issuance,” Koczwara said in an email. “The Debt Management Office reviews all financing options on an ongoing basis, assessing market conditions and the government’s financing requirements, and we will make appropriate recommendations on the different options to the relevant government authorities.“
S&P expects the Emirate’s fiscal deficit to narrow to 1.9 % of GDP in 2017 compared to closer to 3 % of GDP in 2016.

Sources say, the emirate of Sharjah has hired HSBC to set up a US-dollar sukuk programme because its government is looking into borrowing to reduce its budget deficit. A first issuance under the newly set sukuk programme is expected in the 4th quarter 2017 according to sources. HSBC has not yet commented on this. The government of Sharjah did not respond either.
Sharjah debted capital market before, having issued a $750 million 10-year sukuk in 2014 and a $500 million 5-year sukuk in January 2016. Sharjah is rated BBB+ by Standard & Poor's. The agency affirmed its credit rating and outlook last month, citing Sharjah' social and political stability, and the emirate's low external risks derived from its membership in the United Arab Emirates. The rating however is constrained by the emirate's limited monetary flexibility, due to the fact that the UAE dirham is pegged to the US dollar, and the underdeveloped domestic bond market, S&P said.

Islamic insurers in the GCC will probably continue to face headwinds, despite a better overall. The forcasted slowdown follows years of annual growth in gross premiums of up to 20 %, which was mainly driven by the introduction of new mandatory covers, as well as strong increases in premium rates in Saudi Arabia, as new covers and actuarial pricing guidelines were adopted, S&P Global Ratings noted yesterday.
“Now that more policies are adequately priced, overall premium growth has slowed,” said S&P Global Ratings’ credit analyst Emir Mujkic. “The slowdown in premium growth has also been influenced by lower economic activity across all GCC states, as governments are trying to reduce or delay their spending due to lower revenues from hydrocarbon sales,” Mujkic added.

Oman‘s Bank Nizwa just launched its new wealth management services in order to provide high net worth clients with the most effective Islamic financial solutions to grow funds. The banks customers will have access to a full range of tailored products and services to cater to their exclusive needs, amongst them direct access to a relationship manager, Mudaraba Investment Options, and other value-added benefits.

Dana Gas has withdrawn an offer to creditors to exchange its debt of $ 700 million Islamic bond for new notes. Thereby ending the chance of a consensual resolution to a case that could shape the future of the global Islamic finance industry. The gas company is refusing to repay holders of its Islamic bond which matures in October. It said last month it had received legal advice that the bond was no longer Sharia-compliant in the UAE because of changes in Islamic finance interpretations over the recent years, and was therefore not lawful. But creditors say Dana has to pay them back and argue if the sukuk was legal when the deal was struck, it holds, and if it was illegal then it would mean the company is in default.

Central Bank issued a notificaiton in May this year about mis-selling of investments. The UAE‘s largest Sharia-compliant lender, Abu Dhabi Islamic Bank, has welcomed efforts by the central bank to clamp down on unscrupulous sales of investment plans to UAE expats It said, the reputation of the industry as a whole had been damaged by dishonest brokers.
“More regulation is a good thing and we work very closely with the central bank” and other wealth management institutions who wish to improve their services, said Daffer Luqman of Abu Dhabi Islamic Bank. “At the end of the day the reputation of the business affects everybody. If an institution does a bad job of promoting or marketing a service it affects the whole industry so it’s very important that this business is regulated, that it’s regulated effectively and that everybody plays by the rules.”