Kazakhstan will revive plans this year for a $500 million debut sukuk issue that could create a benchmark for corporate lenders aiming to develop an Islamic finance sector in Central Asia’s top economy.
Kazakhstan also plans to attract up to $10 billion in Islamic finance over the next five to seven years, Arken Arystanov, chairman of the state-run agency that regulates the Regional Financial Centre of Almaty (RFCA), said on Monday.
Oil-rich Kazakhstan, where 70 percent of the 16.4 million population are Muslim, is being touted as a potential new market for Islamic finance.
http://www.reuters.com/article/2011/03/14/kazakhstan-finance-islam-idUSLDE72D08V20110314
