IslamicFinance.de

The merger of Qatari banks Masraf Al Rayan, Barwa Bank and International Bank of Qatar is said to take six months to complete, Masraf Al Rayan’s chairman Hussain Ali al-Abdulla said lately. In December Reuters had reported that merger talks had begun which, if successful, would create the Gulf state’s second-largest bank. The new bank would have assets worth more than 160 billion riyals ($44 billion).
KPMG and PricewaterhouseCoopers have been appointed as merger advisers, along with law firm Allen & Overy as legal adviser, and furthermore the Barwa Bank and International Bank of Qatar. Masraf Al Rayan’s shareholders approved the issuance of sukuk worth up to $2 billion to meet the bank’s liquidity needs. In January banks had been appointed to handle a debut sukuk issue of around $500 million, banking sources told Reuters that month, but Abdullah said on Sunday the timing of the issue had not been finalised. Asked whether the bank’s liquidity had been affected by low oil prices Abudullah said “liquidity now is better than in 2016” and that the U.S. Federal Reserve’s raising of interest rates last month would improve the profits of Qatari banks.

PwC Luxembourg in association with the Luxembourg Stock exchange publishes a new brochure about Sukuk listing in the Grand Duchy. This document distributed on 6 May 2013 during the “Journée boursière” provides an overview of the Islamic Finance Market in Luxembourg and highlights the benefits of Sukuk Listing and Trading in Luxembourg. 16 Sukuk have been listed on the Luxembourg Stock exchange. With more than 3,127 listed issuers coming from 103 countries, the Luxembourg Stock Exchange meets capital market players’ needs. Luxembourg remains one of the most competitive, stable and secure environments in Europe to locate securitisation transactions. The development of Islamic Finance in Luxembourg has been set as priority by the Grand Duchy.

Four out of seven tenders submitted to the International Bank of Azerbaijan (IBA) came through stage one of the competition to land a consultancy contract on the provision of Islamic banking and financial services.
Among the finalists are: Ekvita & Islamic Finance Advisory Assurance Services, Ernst & Young with Baker McKenzie, PricewaterhouseCoopers, and consortium consisting of Salans, Pinsent Masons and KPMG.