London, 09 April 2014 - BLME, Europe's largest Islamic bank, has been selected to co-lead the Islamic Development Bank (IDB) US$1.5 billion five-year Sukuk. The bank's representative office in Dubai (official documentation was with BLME London) , which opened in May last year, was appointed in to handle the issuance.
IDB Sukuk is the largest ever Islamic bond issued from the AAA rated supranational lender in 2014. It is also the largest Sukuk issuance BLME has been appointed to act as co-lead manager on to date.
The IDB issued 16 Sukuk in London since 2005 which raised around US$7 billion. It has a US$ 313 million programme listed in Malaysia and has raised 700 million ringgit since 2008 via three Sukuk.
Humphrey Percy, CEO of BLME, said:
"The IDB is becoming a major economic force both in the region and globally. Our participation as co-lead arranger concluded a significant landmark year for BLME, given our mutual dedication to promoting Islamic finance across the GCC and the UK.
"Islamic finance is gaining real momentum on a global scale and there are strong signs that this is set to continue. In the GCC specifically, a lot of issuance is expected to mature in 2014, giving more prominence to the Sukuk market locally."
BLME listed on NASDAQ Dubai in October 2013, and announced a strong performance for the full year on 3rdMarch 2014. The bank was named Best UK Islamic Bank by World Finance, the [fifth] award it has won this year.
© Press Release 2014
