Goldman Sachs International on Wednesday outbid Fortress Investment Group LLC to provide exit financing to Arcapita Bank BSC worth up to $350 million, money that will allow the Bahraini bank to meet outstanding obligations and work its way out of bankruptcy. U.S. Bankruptcy Judge Sean H. Lane noted that the bank was in the unusual position of having two institutions fighting over which would be able to provide the financing.
Goldman Sachs International announced last September that it was going to the market to raise financing totaling $2 billion through a Murabaha sukuk issuance.
The issuance is based on a structure accepted by Dar Al-Istithmar Limited, the Shariah adviser to the issuer, Global Sukuk Company Limited, whose Shariah Supervisory Board is chaired by Hussain Hamed Hassan and includes Ali Al-Qaradaghi, Abdul Sattar Abu Ghuddah, Abdulaziz Fawzan Saleh Al-Fawzan and Aznan Hasan.
The issuance would have passed as a routine Murabaha sukuk save that the issuer was doing it on behalf of arguably the most high profile investment bank in the world, Goldman Sachs.