The UAE’s Emirates Islamic has announced it has successfully concluded its debut 3-year-term $500 million syndicated financing facility.
The facility is the first of its kind raised by a Shariah-compliant financial institution, the bank said in a press release. It has been structured as a commodity Murabaha term financing facility in compliance with Shariah principles set out by the Accounting and Auditing Organisation for Islamic Financial Institutions (AAOIFI).
As such, the proceeds will be used for Shariah-compliant general corporate funding purposes.
The new financing facility “further strengthens the bank’s balance sheet by increasing its ability to support its clients as well as its own strategic growth ambitions”, the bank said.
Mohammad Kamran Wajid, Deputy Chief Executive Officer of Emirates Islamic, said, “Over the past two decades, we have remained committed to delivering exceptional banking services to our customers, and this Shariah-compliant financing facility will further strengthen their confidence in Emirates Islamic.”
Emirates NBD Capital Limited, HSBC Bank Middle East Limited and Standard Chartered Bank acted as global coordinators and mandated lead arrangers and bookrunners.
Last year, Emirates Islamic issued a Dh1 billion public Sukuk, which was oversubscribed 2.5 times, highlighting the strength of the Dirham Sukuk market, and emphasising confidence in the local currency market from global Shariah-compliant investors.
That same year, the bank reported a 71% increase in net profits to Dh 2.12 billion, driven by financing growth, a low-cost funding base and increased transaction volumes.
