Oman To Mandate Citigroup, JPMorgan, HSBC For Dollar Sukuk

The country also mandated Dubai Islamic Bank and Alizz Islamic Bank, and may add more institutions for the dollar-denominated sukuk offering, the people said, asking not to be identified because the information is private. The oil producer who is not an OPEC member may sell at least US$500mn Islamic bonds as early as this quarter.

Oman, which raised US$5bn through a three part sale of dollar bonds in February, is among governments across the six nation Gulf Corporation Council (GCC) tapping the debt markets to help offset the impact of a drop in crude prices. Saudi Arabia has hired Citigroup, HSBC and JPMorgan to help arrange the sale of dollar sukuk in the first half, people familiar with the matter said recently.

The yield on the government’s 2027 bonds rose 1.5 basis points to 4.85 per cent at in Dubai on Thursday, according to data compiled by Bloomberg.

Oman is rated third-lowest investment grade by Moody’s Investors Service and one level above junk by S&P Global Ratings.

JPMorgan, HSBC and Dubai Islamic Bank declined to comment, while Alizz, Citi and Standard Chartered didn’t respond to emails seeking comments.

Originally published on www.muscatdaily.com