IslamicFinance.de

The value of new sukuk listings on Nasdaq Dubai since the beginning of 2020 until mid-September reached $ 11.4 billion, an increase of 55% over the value of sukuk listed in the same period last year. The total value of the sukuk listed in Dubai (between Nasdaq Dubai and the Dubai Financial Market) currently stands at $ 73.49 billion, making the emirate one of the largest sukuk listing centers in the world. The sukuk issuers on Nasdaq Dubai this year varied between Emirati and foreign countries, including Sharjah Islamic Bank, Dubai Islamic Bank, Dubai World Ports, GFH (from Bahrain), Dar Al Arkan (from Saudi Arabia), the Indonesian government, and the Islamic Development Bank.

Dubai Islamic Bank (DIB) is celebrating the listing of a $1 billion Sukuk on Nasdaq Dubai. The listing is the first benchmark dollar-denominated sukuk from a GCC issuer in 2018. DIB's Group CEO Dr Adnan Chilwan said the bank's master plan was developed a decade ago and has yielded solid results so far. He added that the strong demand for the credit continues to grow across a diverse global investor base. This issuance is DIB’s sixth sukuk on Nasdaq Dubai, making the bank the largest UAE debt issuer by value on the exchange with a total of $5.25 billion. The total value of all sukuk listed on Dubai’s exchanges has now reached $53.47 billion, the largest amount of any listing centre in the world.

Dubai Islamic Bank (DIB) celebrates the listing of a $1 billion Sukuk on Nasdaq Dubai. The Sukuk is the first benchmark dollar-denominated Sukuk from a GCC issuer in 2018. It is DIB's sixth Sukuk on Nasdaq Dubai, making the bank the largest UAE debt issuer with a total of $5.25 billion. The latest Sukuk carries a profit rate of 3.625% with a five-year tenor. DIB's Group CEO Dr Adnan Chilwan said the master plan developed a decade ago has yielded solid results and the strong demand for the credit continues to grow across a diverse global investor base. He added that Nasdaq Dubai provided high visibility in the marketplace as well as close links to investors in the region and internationally.

Nasdaq Dubai and the Nairobi Securities Exchange have signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) to facilitate the creation of a Sukuk sector in Kenya. The MoU was signed in Dubai by Hamed Ali, CEO of Nasdaq Dubai, and Geoffrey Odundo, CEO of the Nairobi Securities Exchange. Hamed Ali assured that by cooperating and sharing expertise, the two Exchanges will provide powerful support for the growth of Islamic finance in Kenya. Geoffrey Odundo said the development of the Islamic capital markets can provide significant support for funding national development while strengthening international relationships. Other recent steps for the sector include a Sukuk transaction on Nasdaq Dubai’s Murabahah financing platform carried out by the Africa Finance Corporation.

Nasdaq Dubai has welcomed the listing of a $500 million Sukuk by APICORP, the development bank of the Arab world’s oil and gas industries. The transaction is APICORP’s second Sukuk listing on Nasdaq Dubai, as the first was in January 2016. The Sukuk was issued under a $3 billion Sukuk programme and is aimed at diversifying its funding sources. APICORP’s activities include equity investment, debt financing, financial advisory and energy research services. Sukuk listings in the Emirate currently totals at $52.97 billion. 11 Sukuk listings have taken place so far in 2017 on Nasdaq Dubai with a total value of $10.25 billion.

Nasdaq Dubai and IdealRatings have launched a suite of indices tracking the performance of global Islamic bonds. The indices may serve as the underlying to future investment products including exchange-traded funds. To be eligible for inclusion in the indices, each bond must have a minimum size of at least $100m, a remaining time to maturity of at least three months, and must be approved by a Shariah accredited board. The Nasdaq Dubai IdealRatings Sukuk Index family comprises the Global Sukuk Index as well as several indices covering distinct segments of the market. They include investment grade issuances, issuances by sovereigns, issuances by corporates, issuances by financial institutions and Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) issuances. As of 1 October 2016 the Global Sukuk Index has returned 3.1% year-to-date and 15.2% since the index’s base date of 1 November 2012.

Nasdaq Dubai and IdealRatings has announced the launch of benchmark indices that track the performance of global Sukuk, in order to provide investors with new data to make informed trading decisions. The data includes daily movements in price and total return, with monthly updates on yield and other key indicators. It tracks a universe of more than 1,800 Sukuk globally, with eligibility criteria including a minimum issue size of 100 million US dollars. The Global Sukuk Index covers all currencies and has five sub-indices. The sub-indices reflect distinct segments of the market, which are: investment grade issuances, issuances by sovereigns, issuances by corporates, issuances by financial institutions and GCC issuances. According to Hamed Ali, CEO of Nasdaq Dubai, the indices add a valuable new stream of information to investors’ existing trading tools.

Dubai has overtaken other financial centres in listing Islamic bonds on its exchanges, and is mounting a global drive to attract more listings while developing new channels to trade sukuk, Hamed Ahmed Ali, the chief executive of Nasdaq Dubai said. The exchange is working on ways to sell sukuk directly to retail investors, expanding the primary market beyond institutional buyers, and designing a sharia-compliant repurchase agreement, he said. Until 2013, issuers from the Gulf usually chose European exchanges to list sukuk; that has begun changing. Unlike Europe, Dubai has a stable of local state-linked firms which can be encouraged to issue sukuk and list them locally. Also, Dubai is at the heart of a Muslim region, which both supplies sukuk and provides investor demand, Ali said.

Dubai capital market seems to be lively again after two new Islamic bonds in value of $500m respectively $650m has been issued this year. After a long period of uncertainity, this should be a turning point for secondary market as well as key driver for region's capital markets in order to get back on the desired growth path.

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NASDAQ Dubai welcomes the announcement made today by Dubai Financial Market (DFM), by which DFM has made an offer to acquire NASDAQ Dubai, subject to regulatory approvals. Under the new ownership structure, DFM and NASDAQ Dubai will develop closer operational links.