The Astana International Exchange (AIX) has reported the placement of Kazakhstan’s first Sukuk, valued at around $9.6 million. These Islamic financial certificates, with a maturity of three years and a 20% coupon rate, have been issued by a subsidiary of the Gamma-T servicing company.
Sukuk have been placed within a 10-year bond program worth $19.2 million. The first tranche, structured under the Ijarah principle, was launched on Dec. 5. The total number of securities with a nominal value of $960 per piece is 10,000.
Ijarah Sukuk present a type of secured coupon bond. The company that wants to allocate funds can sell or transfer the assets to a special-purpose entity (SPE) that issues Sukuk. The holders of these securities keep the assets in trust management. The share of assets held by each investor corresponds with the amount of money invested. SPE lets out purchased assets for lease, and the lease payments are then applied to payments for the Sukuk holders.
«The key features of Ijarah Sukuk are that the assets must be Sharia-compliant, and the asset title remains with the lessor, while the ongoing maintenance is the lessee’s liability,» the AIX’s press service added.
Gamma-T has established a dedicated subsidiary, Gamma-T SPC, specifically for these purposes. According to the AIX, the subsidiary was registered on Nov. 14. Its scope of activities includes financial services, financing across various economic sectors and investment activities, excluding insurance and pension provision. According to the entity’s profile on the AIX, it’s a special-purpose company exempt from taxes. Both the subsidiary and the parent company are managed by Tatyana Sakharova.
Gamma-T was established in 2009 in the Pavlodar region. The founder is Tatyana Sakharova. Among its core activities are maintenance of coal mining enterprises, freight railway transportation and cargo handling.
In the summer, deputy head of Kazakhstan’s Agency for Regulation and Development of the Financial Market (ARDFM) Olzhas Kizatov announced that Kazakhstani banks would be allowed to establish Islamic windows within their branches. He also noted that Islamic financial institutions would have the option to convert into conventional ones.
According to Ruslan Dalenov, deputy head of the Eurasian Development Bank, the Islamic window project is set to be fully operational by mid-2025, alongside the financing of several pilot projects. The initiative aims to attract between $500 million and $1 billion annually.
