Damac celebrates $500m sukuk listing on Nasdaq Dubai
Damac Properties Chairman Hussain Sajwani on Thursday rang the market opening bell to celebrate the listing of a $500-million sukuk (Islamic bond), issued by its subsidiary Damac Real Estate Development Limited (DRED), on Nasdaq Dubai.
The listing on the region’s international exchange supports Damac’s capital-raising initiative as it pursues its property development strategy, which includes a footprint that extends across the Middle East with projects in the UAE, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Jordan and Lebanon, said the statement from the developer.
According to Damac, the sukuk has received strong interest from institutional investors across the Middle East, Europe and Asian region.
It is the second Islamic bond listed by Dubai-based group on Nasdaq Dubai, following a $650 million sukuk listed by the company in April 2014.
The bell ringing ceremony took place in the presence of Essa Kazim, the governor of Dubai International Financial Centre (DIFC), secretary general of Dubai Islamic Economy Development Centre (DIEDC), and chairman of Dubai Financial Market (DFM), and senior representatives of Damac Properties, as well as Hamed Ali, the chief executive of Nasdaq Dubai.
On the sukuk listing, Sajwani said: "This provides valuable financial underpinning for our strategy of delivering luxury living to the region, including a development portfolio of more than 44,000 residential units at various stages of progress and planning, as well as over 13,000 hotel rooms and hotel apartments under development."
"As we expand, our Nasdaq Dubai listing provides our sukuk with excellent visibility to investors around the world as well as our own region, together with a highly-respected regulatory framework," he stated.
"We continue to seek land acquisition opportunities in prime areas of Dubai and beyond and this funding supports our plans whilst also enabling us to remain prudent in our management of liabilities," he added.
Kazim said Damac's strategy to raise capital through sukuk underlines Dubai’s growth as a centre for both issuance and listing of this important asset class, drawing on the abundant Islamic finance expertise that is based in the emirate.
"Dubai’s sukuk listings have now reached a total nominal value of $53.71 billion, the highest amount of any listing venue in the world," he added.
Abdul Wahed Al Fahim, the chairman of Nasdaq Dubai, said: "We are committed to providing Damac and its investors with the effective infrastructure that they expect in a world class listing environment."
"We look forward to welcoming further sukuk that will be issued by prominent UAE, regional and international companies and other entities to fund their expansion and development strategies," he noted.
Nasdaq Dubai CEO Hamed Ali said: "As the sukuk market continues to grow in the region and internationally by attracting a widening range of market participants, we will further enhance our pre-listing procedures and post-listing services for the benefit of issuers and investors."
"Nasdaq Dubai will continue to expand its Islamic finance listings and solutions, with sukuk at the forefront of our development and innovation," he added.
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