Middle East
Bonds, loans drive GCC asset growth
The GCC’s banking sector has, despite higher lending costs, seen a steady growth in the loan markets. As a result of this the sector has also seen a small increase in total assets, which has in turn been supported by the region’s bond markets.
16 Jun 2016
Oman adds to the ME sovereign debt frenzy with US$2.5bn bond
While smaller than recent deals seen from its Middle Eastern peers, Oman added its name to a growing list of sovereigns to issue new debt in the region with a US$2.5bn dual-tranche bond. The deal could entice quasi-sovereigns and large corporates to tap the markets.
9 Jun 2016
CASE STUDY: DP World issues largest single-tranche sukuk in ME since 2014
DP World’s recent US$1.2bn sukuk maturing in 2023 is the first gross throughput capacity-based wakala sukuk structure in the global ports industry. The issuance is also the largest single tranche corporate sukuk to emerge from the Middle East since 2014.
8 Jun 2016
Debt complacency unlikely to affect GCC reform progression
Low oil prices have prompted many Middle Eastern sovereigns to introduce reforms aimed at diversifying their economies away from oil revenues. Many such countries have, or are also planning to tap the international debt markets. With oil prices stabilising and liquidity still strong, will true structural reforms inevitably fall by the wayside?
2 Jun 2016
Saudi Arabia’s DMO to help develop a yield curve for other issuers
Plans for the creation of a debt management office (DMO) in Saudi Arabia demonstrate how it has begun turning to alternative forms of financing amid low oil prices. The DMO would likely assist in the sovereign’s planned bond sale, which could help create a yield curve for local corporates to follow.
31 May 2016
Noor Bank scales capital market activities with Basel III in sight
Noor Bank’s recently issued Tier 1 sukuk is a sign compliance with Basel III requirement is edging upward on the agenda of various banks across the Middle East. Far from restricting entities in what they can lend or borrow, it has enabled them to make wiser choices when accessing or lending capital.
31 May 2016
CASE STUDY: Boubyan’s Sukuk Sets a Number of Firsts
Boubyan Bank’s capital boosting sukuk is the first Islamic bond to be issued by a Kuwaiti bank and the first ever Basel III-compliant Tier 1 US dollar-denominated sukuk. The transaction marked Boubyan’s first entry onto the international capital markets. It is the first Tier 1 issuance to emerge from the GCC since November 2015 and the first sukuk out of Kuwait since 2007.
31 May 2016
Qatar surprises markets with record US$9bn bond
Despite Qatar’s record breaking bond surprising the markets, it is unlikely that there will be a large shift in the pricing of Middle Eastern debt unless the majority of investors that bought the bond were local. It is also unlikely to cause other issuers in the region from saturating domestic or international markets.
26 May 2016
Are Middle Eastern lenders losing ground to international heavyweights?
The increasing participation of international lenders, including Asian banks, on debt transactions in the Middle East is a sign that local lenders are suffering from a shortage of liquidity. However, deposit rates are increasing in some Gulf countries, and there is still liquidity in some countries’ banking sectors, although lending has been contained to banks’ local markets.
26 May 2016
CASE STUDY: A Strategically Important Deal For Egypt’s Hydrocarbon Industry
Amiral Holdings Limited’s US$266mn project finance deal was structured against a backdrop of significant currency volatility, a sagging economy, and political turmoil. The deal is critical for the expansion of the petroleum industry in Egypt.
25 May 2016