RIYADH: Saudi Arabia’s domestic market has recorded $14.4 billion worth of sukuk sales this year, registering a growth of 185 percent over the last year, Bloomberg reported.
Sukuk, which is also called an Islamic bond, is a debt product issued in accordance with Shariah or Islamic laws.
This amount represents more than half of global domestic sukuk sales, and the Saudi government alone has sold more than 60 percent of it.
“There are a lot of projects going on in Saudi Arabia driven by their Vision 2030 to diversify their economy away from oil. These all need funding,” Doug Bitcon, the Dubai-based head of credit strategies at Rasmala Investment Bank, said.
He added: “Local investors are familiar with the local companies and they can often raise liquidity at fine spreads.”
