Thursday 10 December 2009

Islamic interbank rates shoot higher

Exposure of Islamic banks to the debts of Dubai World, the troubled state-owned conglomerate in the Gulf, has rattled the industry and caused funding costs for them across the region to soar, according to bankers.

Dubai has been one of the most active issuers of bonds that comply with Islamic principles, known as sukuk, and the announced restructuring of $26bn of debts at the state-owned Dubai World conglomerate – including billions of dollars of sukuk – has shaken the Islamic finance industry.

“Islamic banks have a very large exposure not only to Dubai but to structured finance in general,” said Nish Popat, regional head of fixed income at ING Investment Management.

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