DOHA: Al Jazeera Finance, Qatar’s leading Shariah-complaint financial services company, has plans to launch an initial public offering (IPO) as part of plans to go public.
The size of the primary issue is expected to be QR1bn. The IPO is a step forward for the company to seek listing on the Qatari bourse (Qatar Exchange), Al Sharq reported yesterday.
“We have applied to the Qatar Exchange administration for approval to launch an IPO. As soon as we get the approval we will offer our shares to the public for subscription,” Amir Mohammad Al Jabri, CEO of Al Jazeera Finance told Al Sharq.
The demand for Islamic financing is growing in several sectors like industry, real estate, trade, services and agriculture, in addition to the consumer financing segment, said Al Jabri.
As for consumer financing the company’s policy is based on the salary of the borrowers. “This policy is guided by the central bank and being followed by all banks and financial institutions,” said the CEO.
Trade financing is based entirely on a company’s capital and assets, liquidity flow and partners of the company to minimize the risk, said Al Jabri. Islamic banks and financial intuitions had been criticized in the past for not upgrading their services and products to keep pace with the changes taking place in the global banking industry, said the CEO.
But the situation is totally different now. Islamic banks have become quite advanced and have upgraded their systems. They are well aware about the requirements of the market and able to provide services that had been monopolized by the international banks in a better way, said the CEO.
The Peninsula
