Dubai Islamic Bank delays Sukuk issuance due to uncertainty surrounding coronavirus

Dubai Islamic Bank has postponed the issuance of its estimated USD 750 million Sukuk, given increased market volatility following the coronavirus outbreak. A consortium of banks in the United Arab Emirates, including Emirates NBD Capital, First Abu Dhabi Bank, HSBC, and Standard Chartered Bank had been hired to arrange the issuance of the Sukuk, which was initially set for February 26th, 2020.

The potential issuance had received an extremely positive response during its marketing phase. However, the bank decided to wait for market conditions to improve, as the impact of the coronavirus would have likely justified the need for a higher Sukuk profit rate by potential investors.