By Tuba Ongun
Türkiye's leading state-run participation bank, Ziraat Katilim, announced Tuesday it completed its first international sukuk issuance.
The $500 million certificate was made through the Joint Bookrunners Dubai Islamic Bank, Emirates NBD Capital, HSBC and Standard Chartered Bank on Sept. 31, the bank said in a statement.
The final book was more than five times oversubscribed from 135 accounts in 24 countries, it said.
A sukuk is an Islamic financial certificate, similar to a bond in Western finance, which complies with Islamic religious law.
It was the first international issuance from a state-owned participation bank and the first non-sovereign sukuk from Türkiye since September 2021, according to the statement.
"The substantial and balanced demand coming from Europe and the Middle East with such a diversified investor base comprised of conventional and Islamic finance focused investors is a testament to the confidence to Ziraat Katilim and the Turkish economy in general," said Metin Ozdemir, CEO of the bank.
The sukuk is expected to add value to the Turkish manufacturing industry and to set an example for additional overseas sukuk issuances by Turkish banks moving forward, noted Ozdemir.