IslamicFinance.de

Dana Gas stocks rose by 13.2% on Christmas Day 2017, to complete a buoyant six months for the stock. This may be due to the company's arbitration victory against the regional government of Iraqi Kurdistan, over $2bn it and its consortium partners are owed in overdue payments. It also hints at shareholders’ belief that Dana will not be forced soon to satisfy its own creditors. The firm refused to honour its $700m sukuk bond claiming that it no longer complied with sharia law, therefore was 'unlawful' in the United Arab Emirates (UAE). In November a British court ruled that the company had to pay. The judges said that, because the bond was issued under English law, it had to be viewed on its merits under that law alone. The risk of non-compliance in the UAE, they argued, must fall squarely on Dana. The Islamic-finance industry cheered this ruling. However, to get hold of Dana’s domestic assets, creditors need a new ruling from the UAE courts. The Dana saga is a reminder not just that Islamic finance still lacks shared standards, but also that court judgments help creditors only when they are enforceable.