IslamicFinance.de

Saudi Arabia's Al Othaim Real Estate and Investment Co, owner of five shopping malls in the kingdom, is marketing a five-year debut sukuk issue which could raise up to 1 billion riyals ($267 million) for the company. The firm, also known as Othaim Malls, is part of Al Othaim Holding, a family-owned conglomerate which includes listed food retailer Abdullah Al Othaim Markets Co. Othaim Malls launched the transaction last week, with pricing earmarked at between 165 basis points and 175 basis points over the six-month Saudi interbank offered rate. Part of the proceeds will be used to fund its expansion plans.

Saudi Arabia's Al Othaim Real Estate and Investment Co, owner of five shopping malls in the kingdom, has revived plans to issue a debut local currency Islamic bond, probably after the summer. The firm has picked the investment banking arms of Banque Saudi Fransi, Gulf International Bank and National Commercial Bank as lead arrangers for the riyal-denominated bond. Timing is now centred on issuing after the summer, as activity in the Saudi capital markets slows down for the holy month of Ramadan, expected to start later this month, and then the long summer break away from the desert heat. After a slow start to the year, sukuk issuance in the riyal-denominated market has picked up in recent weeks.