As investors open up to this alternative investment class, real estate investment trusts (REITs) are gradually gaining traction within the GCC. In 2016 we saw the listing – but not an initial public offering (IPO) – of Riyad REIT at Tadawul, as well as the IPO of Eskan Bank REIT, which completed its offering on December 6, 2016 and listed on...
The Bahraini bond and sukuk (Islamic bond) market has been the best performing GCC fixed-income market up until December 2016, returning an average of 8.7% despite a turbulent period which saw oil prices fall to as low as $28 and the country stripped of its investment-grade, long-term issuer rating.
The global Islamic finance industry is a rapidly growing but relatively new phenomenon, and therefore the approach of national regulators varies from one jurisdiction to the next. Almost all regulatory frameworks, however, fall within two broad models: a centralised system, with some form of higher sharia authority to pronounce upon regulatory...
The region’s exchanges have operated in adverse economic conditions since the decline of oil prices began in the second half of 2014, and the Bahrain Bourse (BHB) is no exception. However, the apparent stabilisation of global oil prices in 2016 has brought a similar firming of the main index and, after a year of shrinking stock prices, some...
Economic diversification has been a strategic priority for GCC finance ministries for decades, and the recent decline in oil prices has only served to underscore the importance of hydrocarbons-driven economies reducing their dependence on oil and gas to ensure their long-term economic stability. Much of the momentum behind this process in the...
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