Fitch Ratings (Fitch) Indonesia has affirmed Bank BRIsyariah’s (BRIS, BB+/AA(idn)/Stable) national rating on its Subordinated Sukuk (Sukuk) at ‘A(idn)’.  According to IslamicMarkets Sukuk Monitor, the Sukuk, which is worth IDR 1 trillion, was issued in November 2016, priced at IDR 100 and is set to mature in November 2023. Proceeds of the Sukuk will be used to boost capital structure to support business development activities.  Fitch’s notes that its Sukuk programme was rated three notches below its National Lon...

Waha Capital, a financing company based in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates, has launched a new Shariah-compliant open-ended income-generating fund expected to attract more than USD 500 million (AED 1.83 billion). The new fund, titled ‘Waha Islamic Income Fund SP’ will invest in Shariah-compliant assets in the global Sukuk and equity markets, Waha Capital said in a recent statement. Chief Executive Officer of Waha Capital, Amr Al Menhali stated that although the company's existing funds had Shariah-compliant elements, the steadily incre...

Qatar-based Islamic bank, Masraf Al Rayan’s (MAR) USD 750 million five-year Sukuk has been oversubscribed more than four times, according to local media reports. The issued Sukuk, which comes under its existing USD 2 billion Sukuk Programme, saw a subscription of around USD 3.3 billion, according to a regulatory filing by MAR with the Qatar Stock Exchange.  The overwhelming demand from investors has allowed MAR, which is rated ‘A1’ by Moody’s Investors Service, to increase the issue size to USD 750 million from an initial USD 500 million. The...

Malaysia is likely to see its interest rate cut again, as Bank Negara Malaysia (BNM) is anticipated to make one final 25 basis point (bps) cut in the country’s overnight policy rate (OPR) as early as September 2020, according to economists, bringing the benchmark used by financial institutions to set lending rates to a record low of 1.5% from the current 1.75%.  BNM’s Monetary Policy Committee is scheduled to meet and decide on the OPR on the 10th of September 2020. So far, Malaysia’s OPR has been slashed four times this year by...

Bahrain is looking to return to the USD-denominated bond market, as it faces one of the world’s largest budget deficits of the year, according to media reports.  The Kingdom has sent a request for proposals to banks to offer a benchmark-size issue, which typically comes up to a minimum of USD 500 million equivalent. According to media reports, the sale may potentially include a mix of conventional bonds and Sukuk.  Despite a USD 10 billion bailout received from regional peers in 2018, Bahrain, which is the smallest economy of the Gulf Cooperation Council, is...

Pakistan's Ministry of Finance has announced that the country’s public debt had surged to PKR 36.3 trillion as of the 30th of June 2020, resulting in a public debt-to-gross domestic product (GDP) ratio of 87.2% in June 2020. According to the State Bank of Pakistan, the public debt-to-GDP ratio which had stood at 86.1% in June 2019 had declined to around 84% by December that year, due to curtailed expenditure controls and an increase in tax collection. In February 2020, the Ministry of Finance announced a primary surplus. However, the ramifications of the COVID-19 pandemi...

Iranian Economic Affairs and Finance Minister, Farhad Dejpasand has stated that the plan to offer crude oil via Salaf bonds in the Iran Energy Exchange (IRENEX) has been temporarily suspended, following an earlier announcement of postponement, according to local media reports.  Speaking on live television, Dejpasand noted that although the first session for investigating the issue of selling crude oil via Salaf bonds was held and the Ministry of Economic Affairs and Finance had approved the plan, the offering will not be implemented for the time being....

The Government of Malaysia has announced that the Recovery Movement Control Order (RMCO) will be extended up to the 31st of December 2020, although the country’s economy is showing positive signs towards recovery.  During a televised interview on the 28th of August 2020, Prime Minister Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin stated that the extensions of the RMCO, implemented to systematically reopen sectors of the Malaysian economy after the nationwide COVID-19 lockdown, will be kept in place until the end of the year, with tourists remaining barred from entering the country...

Development of Waqf Potential as Economic Sources of Community in Riau Province - IndonesiaIslam, Ummah, Waqf

Black Gold’s Price Plunge: Are Conventional and Interest Free Islamic Banks Equally Vulnerable?Ijara, Islamic banking, Mudaraba, Murabaha, PLS, Credit Risk, Reserves