Dana Gas: Shariah Finance’s self-licking ice cream cone
by Christopher W. Holton As we reported earlier this month, the market for Shariah bonds is entering a new crisis as a result of an apparent default by Dana Gas: https://shariahfinancewatch.org/2017/06/15/more-fallout-from-the-dana-gas-sukuk-debacle/ https://shariahfinancewatch.org/2017/06/13/possible-shariah-finance-crisis-brewing-dana-gas-shariah-bonds-declared-unlawful/ Dana Gas is refusing to pay its creditors based on a new decision that its bond offering is no longer Shariah-compliant. This is […]
Big Four auditors KPMG and PricewaterhouseCoopers can shield documents sought by an investment fund for sprawling litigation related to the fall of two powerful Saudi conglomerates in 2009, the Second Circuit ruled. The ruling deprives the New York-based firm Fortress Investment Group of ammunition it wanted for legal battles in England, Bahrain, the Cayman Islands […]
Back in 2009, the market for Shariah bonds (sukuk) nearly collapsed under the weight of a series of defaults. In more recent years, Sukuk have become the favored instrument of choice by the Shariah finance industry. With the collapse in the price of oil, don’t be surprised to see the return of defaults though. Here’s […]
Sukuk, or Shariah-Compliant Bonds, have a poor record in terms of ethics and defaults in particular. The latest example of this comes from Malaysia, one of the Islamic world’s leading nations when it comes to Shariah-Compliant finance. MCRB Southern Link, a conglomerate involved in a variety of businesses in Malaysia, including wholesale foodstuffs, has seen […]
Signs of Cracks in the Sukuk Facade
As we have reported repeatedly here on SFW, Shariah-compliant bonds–sukuk–are the emerging weapon of choice for promoting Shariah worldwide via Shariah-compliant finance. But sukuk are not without controversy and they have a jaded past, as rammed home recently with the troubled Dana Gas sukuk. Now, even some in the Islamic world are issuing words of […]
The board of Dana Gas, the UAE-based natural gas company, is meeting today to discuss the restructuring arrangement that it is working out with creditors in its recent sukuk (Islamic bond) default… Natural gas producer Dana, headquartered in the emirate of Sharjah, said on November 7 it had reached an agreement in principle with creditors on […]
Yesterday we reported that Dana Gas, the United Arab Emirates’ largest natural gas firm, was set to default later today on its $920 million sukuk, or Shariah-compliant bond. We cannot overemphasize the significance of this event. Sukuk have been controversial for some time based on several factors, but chiefly two: (1) Sukuk involve more fees […]
As we alluded to here on SFW back in April and January, the UAE’s Dana Gas, which already had a jaded record when it comes to investment ethics, is NOT going to pay off its creditors under the Shariah-compliant bond (sukuk) arrangement as the fawning financial media had reported. https://shariahfinancewatch.org/2012/04/30/uaes-dana-gas-looking-to-restructure-sukuk/ https://shariahfinancewatch.org/2012/01/31/another-sukuk-in-trouble/ There is no sugarcoating […]
King & Spalding advises on NIG sukuk repayment… http://mideast.legalbusinessonline.com/news/breaking-news/exclusive-king-and-spalding-advises-on-nig-sukuk-repayment-sources/109050
RAM Ratings has downgraded the long-term ratings of two of MRCB Southern Link Bhd (MSLB)’s secured sukuk issues and cautioned that there was a high chance the company would default on them in December. MSLB is a funding conduit for the 8.1km Eastern Dispersal Link Expressway (EDL) in Johor Baru. The highway opened to the […]
More on NIG’s Sukuk Trouble
As we reported yesterday, Kuwait’s National Industries Group has asked for a 4-year extension on repayment of its Islamic bond (sukuk). As might be suspected, NIG is in danger of becoming the next in line for the long line of defaults in the sukuk market. Moody’s is on the cusp on downgrading NIG’s rating: Moody’s […]
Kuwait’s NIG asks for 4-year Extension on $475M Sukuk Issue
The latest sign of trouble in the Islamic bond market… National Industries Group Holding (NIG), a Kuwaiti investment firm controlled by one of the country’s biggest family conglomerates, has asked creditors for a four-year extension on a $475-million Islamic bond, or sukuk, maturing next month. The request from NIG, part of the Kharafi Group, is […]
Here we go again: Financial Times continues spread of the myth of “ethical” Shariah Finance
The financial jihadists have many enablers and useful idiots in the West who help them with their dawa’h mission to spread Shariah through economic imperialism. One surfaced today in the Financial Times. Like many in the financial media, the Financial Times has acted more like a cheerleader for Shariah Finance than as a responsible journalistic organization. […]
Irish Attorney: “Financial shock would never have happened under shariah”
Every once in a while we come across a story that is really outrageous. Some or outrageous because they are inaccurate. Others are outrageous because they are simply offensive. Today we bring to you an article from John King, an attorney with one of Ireland’s most prominent law firms, in which he makes the case […]
Report: S&P to cut rating of Dubai’s DIFC Investments on Sukuk Refinancing Risk
DIFC Investments LLC, which owns properties in Dubai’s tax-free financial center, may have its credit rating cut at Standard & Poor’s due to “heightened refinancing risk” on its $1.25 billion Islamic bond due in June. DIFC Investments “has little room for delays in its efforts to secure a bank loan and government support to refinance the sukuk,” the rating […]
Back on January 31 we reported that Dana Gas, which had issued a sukuk (Islamic bond) looked to be in trouble: https://shariahfinancewatch.org/2012/01/31/another-sukuk-in-trouble/ Well, sure enough, Dana Gas has hired Blackstone, the world’s largest private equity firm, to restructure its sukuk set to mature in October… http://www.businessweek.com/news/2012-04-24/dana-gas-said-to-hire-blackstone-to-restructure-1-billion
UAE-based real estate developer Nakheel launched a new luxury project on the Palm Jumeirah yesterday, its first major residential development since completing a massive restructuring process. Nakheel, which also said it plans to issue the second tranche of its Dh4.8 billion sukuk by the end of April, has appointed Dubai Civil Engineering as the main […]
Kuwait’s troubled Islamic investment firm International Investment Group (IIG) says it has reached an agreement with most of its creditors to restructure its $200 million sukuk (Islamic bond) issue. IIG defaulted on sukuk payments back in 2010. In the 2008-2010 period there was a rash of defaults on sukuk, which came as a shock to […]
Another sukuk in trouble: Investment Dar had its Islamic bonds delisted from Nasdaq Dubai because the Kuwait-based owner of half of Aston Martin Lagonda Ltd. didn’t comply with the regulator’s disclosure requirements. The company also missed a payment on an Islamic bond (sukuk) in May 2009. The shares of Investment Dar were also delisted from the […]
Yet another sukuk (Islamic bond) is in trouble. Like the Nakheel sukuk nearly 3 years ago, this issue is from a company in the United Arab Emirates, though this one is based out of Abu Dhabi, rather than Dubai. The company is Dana Gas, a major natural gas exploration and production company. There are questions as […]
In 2009, a rash of Sukuk defaults, culminating in the huge Nakheel default in Dubai, rocked the market for Islamic bonds, or Sukuk. Creditors in the Dubai World and Nakheel reorganizations all took significant haircuts, with certificate holders in the latter receiving a hybrid of cash and future bonds in compensation. Now, a supposedly rehabilitated Nakheel […]
Sukuk are taking over
Three and a half years ago, the very future of Sukuk (Islamic bonds) was in question when Mufti Taqi Usmani, a prominent Shariah scholar, declared most of them haram, or non-Shariah-compliant. Despite this, the Sukuk market survived, though it then suffered a setback when several Sukuk offerings experienced missed payments and defaults in 2009. Today, […]
Yet another sukuk arrangement seems to have gone awry, this one in Malaysia. Printing company Dawama Sdn Bhd missed a sukuk payment and has been downgraded by Malaysian Rating Corp Bhd (MARC). During the round of defaults that plagued sukuk issuers in 2008-2009, most of the problems surfaced in the Persian Gulf region. It is too early […]
Typical Propaganda on Islamic Bonds from Saudi State-Controlled Media
The article linked below has to be taken with a large grain of salt since it comes from the Saudi Gazette. There is nothing even resembling a free, independent press in Saudi Arabia and the Saudi royals have a huge vested interest in promoting Shariah-Compliant Finance both in the kingdom and globally. Not surprisingly, this […]
Nakheel has returned to the scene of the crime so to speak. As we have reported previously, the Dubai-based real estate company, which defaulted on a massive sukuk (Islamic bond) in 2009, is issuing a new sukuk now. Not surprisingly, investors are very skeptical; the brand new “bond” is already trading at a discount to […]
Some REALLY Bad Ideas on How to Solve America’s Debt Problems
Not surprisingly, the financial jihadists are promoting Shariah as the solution to America’s debt problems. We’ve seen this before. Back in 2008, in the wake of the subprime mortgage debacle and near-financial meltdown, the financial jihadists insisted that Shariah-compliant finance would have avoided the whole mess. Then, in 2009, defaulting on sukuk (Islamic bonds) just […]
Given the rash of sukuk (Islamic bond) defaults which occurred in 2009, it is no surprise that an insurance entity backing sukuk would crop up and one has: The Islamic Corporation for the Insurance of Investment and Export Credit (ICIEC), a division of the Islamic Development Bank (IDB), will soon be tasked with providing insurance on […]
Nakheel properties is pushing ahead with plans to issue Dh4.8 billion sukuk (Islamic bonds) on schedule this month after securing approval for its debt restructuring by all lenders. Quoting an unnamed senior source in Nakheel, the Sharjah-based Arabic language daily Alkhaleej said sukuk would be issued and managed by the German Deutsche Bank. Nakheel, the […]
Returning to the Scene of the Crime: Nakheel settling claims
Back in 2009, the Dubai real estate entity Nakheel was the biggest in a rash of defaults on Islamic bonds (also known as sukuk). Nakheel is still working to settle the claims of creditors two years later and wants to issue yet another sukuk as part of a settlement. And to top it all off, […]
Hat tip to Creeping Sharia: http://creepingsharia.wordpress.com/2011/06/26/canadian-mosque-gets-sharia-compliant-loan-fails-to-pay-it-back/ A Halifax, Nova Scotia mosque and community center run by the Maritime Muslim Academy has had a lien placed on its assets by the architecture firm it hired to design the complex. The mosque was not financed in a conventional manner, since paying or receiving interest is haram under […]
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