The Nairobi Securities Exchange PLC (NSE) has approved the listing of Linzi Sukuk, the first Shari’ah-compliant product to be admitted on its Unquoted Securities Platform (USP).
The USP is an automated solution for the issuance and trading of securities of unquoted companies.
The Linzi Sukuk is a KSh 3 billion Islamic secured residential-based security issued by the Linzi FinCo Trust, a common law unincorporated trust. The bond has a maturity period of 15 years and offers an internal rate of return of 11.13%.
Sukuk, also known as Islamic bonds, are financial instruments that comply with Shari’ah principles, which prohibit interest payments.
The proceeds from the Linzi Sukuk will be used to finance, design, construct, and commission 3,069 institutional houses.
The product is the third security to be admitted to the USP, after the Acorn Student Accommodation Development Real Estate Investment Trust (D-REIT) and the Income Real Estate Investment Trust (I-REIT).
In addition, the USP is used for value discovery, capital raising, and trading experience by small and medium enterprises before graduating to the listing segments offered by the NSE.
The Capital Markets Authority approved the Linzi Sukuk in September.
Geoffrey Odundo, Chief Executive of NSE, says, “Kenya holds huge potential in Shari’ah-compliant instruments that can play a significant role in bridging the vast financing needs across various priority sectors such as infrastructure and housing in the country.”
