Middle East

The Islamic Development Bank has been meeting investors and banks in Europe to explore the possibility of launching its first public sukuk issue in euros. A labelled green sukuk might follow.

Turkish assets gave back early gains on Monday morning as investors digested the news of the victory of Recep Tayyip Erdoğan and his AK Party (AKP) in the country’s presidential and parliamentary elections.

The decision by MSCI to reclassify Saudi Arabia as an emerging market and the country's inclusion in its emerging market indices is a game changing moment for the kingdom in its attempts up to foreign investors. With the IPO of Saudi Aramco looming, investors are excited by the prospects these changes promise, writes Sam Kerr.

Investment company AllianceBernstein says it is focused on the development of the AT1 market beyond the large European banks, as it launched a new financials fund.

Turkey’s Sasa Polyester is on track to take out a €231m export credit agency-backed loan to build a new facility in its home country.

Turkey’s Garanti bank has sold its first ever social bond, a $75m private placement. The International Finance Corporation purchased the bond as part of its Banking on Women Programme.

Turkey’s Garanti bank has sold its first ever social bond, issuing a $75m private placement. The bond was purchased by the International Finance Corporation as part of its Banking on Women Programme.

The FCA’s decision to modify rules in order to allow sovereign owned companies — such as Saudi Aramco — to achieve a premium listing should be seen as just another chapter in the UK’s cosiness with the House of Saud.

Saudi retailer Fawaz Abdulaziz Alhokair & Co has signed an Islamic loan for $300m-equivalent, marking one of the few Shariah-compliant deals to be completed during Ramadan.

The Financial Conduct Authority is going through with its plan to create a new premium listing category for sovereign controlled companies, despite fears among investors and lawmakers that the move will weaken corporate governance standards in the UK.

Emerging market loans bankers are clinging to their tranquil view of Turkey amid soaring bond yields in the country. The insular nature of borrowing practices there means international lenders are exposed almost exclusively to Turkey’s banks.

Oman’s Bank Sohar has sent an invitation to banks to join a syndicated loan, as lenders jostle for mandates on a spate of deals in the Middle East.