November 2004
Etisalat deal breaks record for Islamic financing
The Islamic capital market proves its capacity to fund one of the biggest ever deals outside the oil and gas sector in the Middle East.
Deal: Etisalat
Size: $1.6 billion murabaha facility
Date: October 13 2004
Bookrunners: NCB, Samba Financial Group, Citibank and Emirates Bank
Saudi Arabian banks National Commercial Bank (NCB) and Samba Financial Group, in partnership with a group of international and national banks, have completed the first part of the largest Islamic finance contract ever with United Arab Emirates telecoms operator Etisalat. The $1.6 billion murabaha facility, signed on October 13, will fund Etisalat's $3.5 billion bid for Saudi Arabia's new GSM and 3G mobile telecoms licences.
The financing is more than twice the size of the Government of Dubai's planned $750 million sukuk (Islamic bond) issue which is being used to help fund the redevelopment of Dubai International Airport.
"From a regional perspective, the only other project financing taking place that produces bigger deals than this one is in the oil and gas industries," says Leroy...
You must be a Level 2 subscriber to access this archived content.
If your subscription includes access to the archive, please log in now to view.
To gain access to this content visit the subscription page or call our hotline on +44 (0)207 779 8999.
Subscribe online now and save up to 30% on your subscription.
If you are a trialist or subscriber, please enter your username and password at the top right-hand side of euromoney.com
Subscribers to Euromoney benefit from:
Level 1:
- Online access to the past 12 months content
- Tailored RSS news feeds direct to your desktop
- News delivered directly to your mobile device or PC
- Personalised email newsfeed of 'Top stories' and 'Breaking news'
Level 2:
- Exclusive access to euromoney.com - Read the latest issue early online, search for specific developments by region or sector, interrogate the results of Euromoney's benchmark polls, and view the archive dating back to 2000
- 12 monthly issues of Euromoney magazine
- More than 30 specialist research guides free
- The results of Euromoney’s polls and surveys
- Tailored RSS news feeds direct to your desktop
- News delivered directly to your mobile device or PC
- Personalised email newsfeed of 'Top stories' and 'Breaking news'
Click here to subscribe