QInvest, Qatar’s leading investment bank, is seeing strong volumes in global sukuk activity and expects 2014 issuance to be greater than last year, said a top official.

“With competitive pricing, product innovation and deep liquidity, Islamic finance is becoming an increasingly attractive source of funding for issuers around the world,” added Alex Armstrong, QInvest’s head of Financial Institutions & Structured Finance, speaking at the inaugural IFN Global Forum 2014, which took place recently at the Conrad Hotel, Dubai, UAE.

Armstrong was part of the Middle East Market Review panel and discussed how recent Sukuk activity by international issuers indicates that Islamic finance is becoming a more mainstream source of funding.

“A number of issuers from outside the Islamic world – including the Hong Kong Monetary Authority and the UK government – have successfully raised funding through Sukuk in recent months and we are expecting others to follow suit.  Meanwhile, investor demand for Islamic products is strong and we fully expect demand to exceed supply for some time to come,” said Armstrong.

Year to date, QInvest, Qatar's leading investment bank and one of the most prominent Islamic financial institutions in the world, advised on $3.25 billion of Sukuk transactions which represents approximately 20 per cent of the US Dollar Sukuk market.

IFN Global Forum saw industry experts discuss all facets of the global Islamic financial markets, from discussions on the Islamic capital markets to key upcoming investment trends and opportunities.

IFN Global Forum was organised by Islamic Finance News in collaboration with the Dubai Economic Council, the Dubai Government and other key regulators. – TradeArabia News Service