In a bid to reduce its reliance on imported goods, Indonesia’s Industry Ministry is looking to increase the role of small and medium enterprises (SMEs) by encouraging the SMEs to supply raw materials for larger businesses. According to Gati Wibawaningsih, Director General of SMEs within the Industry Ministry, a special two-week will programme will prepare selected SMEs by assisting them with brand registration, packaging, and also with the National Industrial Standards (SNI), as well as Halal certification to allow t...

Malaysian Rating Corporation (MARC) has affirmed its public information foreign currency sovereign rating on Malaysia at AAA/stable. The AAA rating reflects several credit strengths of the country, including competitiveness and a diversified economy. With regards to competitiveness, MARC notes that this is evidenced by Malaysia’s consistent current account surplus, a healthy external position, a proactive and practical economic and monetary stance, all of which have helped Malaysia remain stable throughout the on-going COVID-19 pandemic and oil price...

Malaysian Rating Corporation (MARC) has affirmed its AAA-IS Rating for issuances made by Putrajaya Holdings (PJH) under three programmes: MYR 370 million Sukuk Musharakah Programme due 2030, MYR 3 billion Sukuk Musharakah Programme due 2032, and MYR 1.5 billion Sukuk Musharakah Medium-Term Notes (MTN) Programme due 2033. The Outlook on all three programmes is Stable. The affirmation of the ratings and outlook are based on anticipated and sizeable rental income flows from the Government of Malaysia, being the principle lessee of...

The International Islamic Trade Finance Corporation (ITFC) and the African Export-Import Bank (Afreximbank), a multilateral financial institution formed by African Governments and institutional investors, have entered into a USD 200 million syndicated Murabahah funding arrangement intended to help African countries tackle the economic impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic.  The Murabahah facility is expected to provide critical support for the agriculture sector of 11 countries in sub-Saharan Africa. In addition, a number of partners and financial institutions who allocated re...

Saudi Arabia-based National Commercial Bank (NCB) has raised a USD 1.05 billion three-year, unsecured Murabahah facility, according to a local media report.  Structured to allow flexibility to the lender, this dual tranche transaction is the first-of-its-kind, in line with new Shariah standards set out by the Accounting and Auditing Organization for Islamic Financial Institutions (AAOIFI). NCB’s debut international syndicated Murabahah facility is the largest raised by a bank in Saudi Arabia and reflects an expansion of NCB’s funding strategy. ...

Malaysia-based Public Mutual (PM) has launched its Public e-Islamic Income Fund (PeISINCF) on the 1st of July 2020, aiming to provide annual income over the medium to long-term period to its investors. The Chief Executive Officer of PM, Yeoh Kim Hong, stated that the fund will be suitable for investors looking for a steady annual income stream. According to PM, PeISINCF will invest mainly in Islamic deposits, Islamic investment accounts, as well as Islamic money market instruments, and may invest up to 50% of its net asset value in Sukuk. With the aforesaid...

The Government of Indonesia has raised the option for Bank Indonesia (BI) to purchase zero-coupon sovereign securities as part of a burden-sharing arrangement to fund the fight against the COVID-19 pandemic.  According to Indonesia’s Minister of Finance, Sri Mulyani Indrawati, BI would bear 100% of the coupon rate burden for securities issued to finance programs that were considered in the public interest, with a value of IDR 397 trillion. Indrawati added that the Government is now finalizing with the BI on how many sovereign securities will be sold to the mark...

Discussing the planned Sukuk issuance, Director of Uzbekistan’s Capital Markets Development Agency, Atabek Nazirov, stated that Uzbekistan is looking to issue Green Securities which it plans to market as a Sukuk, in order to garner interest and increase appeal amongst Islamic finance investors. Being new to the international securities market, Uzbekistan saw its first international sovereign security issuance in February 2019. Added to this, given President of Uzbekistan, Shavkat Mirziyoyev’s commitment to open up the economy to foreign investment (following over twenty yea...

According to the Dubai Media Office, the Government of Indonesia has listed three Sukuk worth USD 2.5 billion on the Nasdaq Dubai. The Sukuk catered to international investors across Asia and the Middle East. Funds raised will be used to fund economic and social development in Indonesia.  According to the IslamicMarkets Sukuk Monitor, the three Sukuk include a USD 1 billion ten-year Sukuk, a USD 750 million five-year green Sukuk, and a USD 750 million thirty-year Sukuk. Media reports state that the green Sukuk has been earmarked for sustainable development projects.&nb...

In a filing issued on the 30th of June 2020, Qatar-based banks, Al Khaliji Commercial Bank and Masraf Al Rayan (MAR) stated that they have commenced negotiations on a merger that could potentially create an Islamic bank with over QAR 164 billion in combined total assets. Both banks stated that the merger is subject to regulatory approval from the authorities (namely the Qatar Central Bank, the Ministry of Commerce, and the Qatar Financial Markets Authority), as well as the respective bank’s s...