Britain becomes the first country outside the Islamic world to issue a sovereign Sukuk
£200m listing on orders of over £2 billion
Confirms London's standing as global Islamic finance hub
Government ministers, the Rt Hon Sajid Javid MP and Andrea Leadsom MP open London trading to mark the launch
London Stock Exchange today welcomes the listing of the UK Government's first Islamic bond, or Sukuk. The listing is the first for a country outside the Islamic world and raised £200m on orders totalling more than £2billion. To mark the occasion, Government Ministers, thSajid Javid MP - Secretary of State for Culture Media and Sport and Minister for Equalities, and Andrea Leadsom MP - Economic Secretary to the Treasury opened trading in a special Market Open Ceremony at London Stock Exchange this morning.
Economic Secretary to the Treasury, Andrea Leadsom, said:
"Today's listing of Britain's sovereign Sukuk, the first outside the Islamic world, is great news for our financial services. The strong demand for the Sukuk not only delivers good value for money for the taxpayer, but also cements Britain's position as the western hub of Islamic finance and is a part of our long term economic plan to make Britain the undisputed centre of the global financial system."
Xavier Rolet, CEO, London Stock Exchange Group said:
"We're delighted to welcome the UK Government ministers to open our markets this morning. The fact that the UK is the first country in the Western world to launch a Sukuk bond, and the exceptional demand for the bond highlights London's standing as the world's leading international financial centre. It also confirms the UK as a key destination for foreign, Shariah-compliant financial products and institutions."
The UK sovereign Sukuk will have a maturity of five years and use the Al-Ijara structure, the most common structure for sovereign Sukuk. The Sukuk will be underpinned by rental income from three central government office properties, which will remain in government ownership during the lifetime of the Sukuk.
More than $38 billion has been raised through 54 Islamic Sukuk issues - including four this year - in London, which is also home to six Islamic banks.
-Ends-
For further information:
Tom Gilbert
+44 (0)20 7797 1222
newsroom@lseg.com
About London Stock Exchange Group:
London Stock Exchange Group (LSE.L) is a diversified international exchange Group that sits at the heart of the world's financial community. The Group can trace its history back to 1801.
The Group operates a broad range of international equity, bond and derivatives markets, including London Stock Exchange; Borsa Italiana; MTS, Europe's leading fixed income market; and the pan-European equities platform, Turquoise. Through its markets, the Group offers international business, and investors, unrivalled access to Europe's capital markets.
Post trade and risk management services are a significant and growing part of the Group's business operations. LSEG operates CC&G, the Rome headquartered CCP and Monte Titoli, the significant European settlement business, selected as a first wave T2S participant. The Group is also a majority owner of leading multi-asset global CCP, LCH.Clearnet.
The Group offers its customers an extensive range of real-time and reference data products, including Sedol, UnaVista, Proquote and RNS. FTSE calculates thousands of unique indices that measure and benchmark markets and asset classes in more than 80 countries around the world.
London Stock Exchange Group is also a leading developer of high performance trading platforms and capital markets software. In addition to the Group's own markets, over 40 other organisations and exchanges around the world use the Group's MillenniumIT trading, surveillance and post trade technology.
Headquartered in London, United Kingdom with significant operations in Italy, France, North America and Sri Lanka, the Group employs approximately 2,800 people.
Further information on London Stock Exchange Group can be found at: www.lseg.com
© Press Release 2014
