IslamicFinance.de

Many West African countries and companies may fall back on Sukuk to finance infrastructural development and corporate growth plans. Managing Director of Jaiz Bank, Hassan Usman, said there could soon be a frenzy of the facility issuance in West Africa. Nigeria recently issued its maiden sovereign Sukuk. It successfully raised N105 billion for its N100 billion Sukuk. Usman added that with a population of about 329 million people, the emerging middle-class segment of the region is expected to boost demand for retail banking, takaful and Islamic funds. According to him, as the market for Islamic Finance develops in Nigeria, each segment of the market will provide potential career paths for young and middle-level professionals. He also noted it might take some time because the ecosystem is currently narrow with only one full-fledged bank, one window operation, one capital market operator and two Takaful operators.