Marking its inaugural transaction of 2021, the International Islamic Liquidity Management Corporation (IILM) has announced the successful completion of an auction for the total issuance of short-term Sukuk worth USD 1.15 billion (MYR 4.646 billion), which is part of the IILM’s A-1 rated USD 4.0 billion short-term issuance programme.   According to a statement issued by IILM on the 19th of January 2021, the Sukuk was issued in three series made up of a USD 400 million issuance with a one-month tenure and a profit rate of 0.28%, a USD 500 million i...

Known as the Movement Control Order 2.0 (MCO 2.0), the lock-down which is set to end on the 26th of January 2021 will need to be extended according to the Fitch Solutions Country Risk and Industry Research, a unit of rating agency Fitch Ratings (Fitch unit). This is given that the current third wave of COVID-19 is a stronger one compared to the previous lockdown in the second quarter of 2020 when the pandemic just hit. Fitch notes that the initial lockdown lasted for almost three months in Malaysia.  The Fitch unit noted that the recently introd...

The Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) of Bank Negara Malaysia (BNM) has maintained its overnight policy rate at 1.75%, noting that it considered its monetary policy stance to be ‘accommodative and appropriate’. In a statement issued on the 20th of January 2021, the MPC added that changes to Malaysia’s monetary policy going forward would depend on new data and information and the implications on the overall outlook for domestic growth and inflation. BNM stated that it hoped to use policy levers appropriately to c...

Indonesia’s Financial Services Authority (OJK) has put forward a proposal requesting that the spin-offs of Shariah business units no longer be made mandatory. The OJK proposes to include this policy in the Omnibus Law Bill for the Financial Sector.  At present, under Law number 21 of 2008 pertaining to Islamic banking, it is mandated for Shariah business units to have an asset value of approximately 50% of the assets of its parent entity when spinning off, or disconnect from its parent within 15 years of the law’s enactment, in 20...

United Arab Emirates-based financial institution Abu Dhabi Islamic Bank (ADIB) has launched a new Shariah-compliant healthcare-focused equities basket note, according to local media reports.The structured note, which has a 12-month maturity, provides 95% capital protection, with no cap on the potential return. The Shariah-compliant product has a minimum investment of USD 50,000 and is open for subscription until the 4th of February 2021, with the option for customers to redeem their investment after a three-month lock-in duration, local media reported.According to Saif Alkeem, Head of Weal...

Indonesian-based financial services provider Permodalan Nasional Madani (PNM) has issued debt securities worth IDR 712 billion under its Sukuk Mudharabah IV Year 2020 Series A (Sukuk).According to an announcement released from the Indonesian Central Securities Depository (KSEI) on the 18th of January 2021, the Sukuk has a tenure of three years and is offered with a trading unit of IDR 20 billion. It has been registered with a floating annual profit sharing with a quarterly frequency of payment and will be issued without a public offering.PNM commenced distributing the Sukuk electronically...

The National Mortgage Corporation of Malaysia, also known as Cagamas, has launched aggregate issuances of Sukuk and conventional bonds worth MYR 710 million, in its inaugural issuance exercise for 2021, according to a recent statement provided by the company.The issuances, which comprise of MYR 300 million Islamic Commercial Papers (ICPs), MYR 300 million Conventional Commercial Papers (CCPs), MYR 55 million one-year Conventional Medium-Term Notes (CMTNs), as well as MYR 55 million three-year CMTNs, will be listed and tradable under the Scripless Securities Trading System. Proceeds of the is...

Fitch Ratings (Fitch) has affirmed at BB- Jordan Islamic Bank's (JIB) Long-Term Issuer Default Rating (IDR), with a Negative Outlook. At the same time, Fitch has also affirmed all of JIB's other ratings. JIB's IDRs are driven by its standalone credit profile, as defined by its Viability Rating (VR).Fitch’s assessment of the VR accounts for JIB’s strong domestic franchise position, being the largest Islamic bank in Jordan with a sound funding and liquidity profile. However, the VR also takes into account exposure to the weakening operating environment domestically, putting added p...

Jordan’s 2021 State Budget, submitted as a draft bill to lawmakers, estimates a post-foreign aid budget deficit of JOD 2.06 billion (USD 2.89 billion), which is 6.5% of the country’s gross domestic product (GDP). This compares against a budget deficit of a JOD 2.16 billion in 2020.Mohamad Al-Ississ, Jordan’s Finance Minister, noted that the 2021 Budget was the most difficult to prepare as the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic together with ‘exceptional regional circumstances’ had dragged down growth rates as well.Details of the Budget reveal that domestic reven...

Bank Syariah Indonesia (BSI) has drawn up business plans with strategies targeting the guarantee of global Sukuk issuances worth between USD 200-300 million per year. This is despite not having completed the merger proceedings yet. According to Hery Gunardi, President Director of Bank Mandiri Syariah, one of the banks involved in the merger, this move was one of the strategies to establish a global presence as a large Shariah bank. Gunardi, who also serves as Head of Project Management Office for Integration...