NUCA to sell EGP 260 bn in sukuk this year: The New Urban Communities Authority(NUCA) plans to issue up to EGP 260 bn worth of sharia-compliant bonds in 2024, in what would be the first corporate sukuk issuance from a government entity, Asharq Business reported, citing four sources it said are in the know. The Finance Ministry-backed issuance is expected to wrap up within a month, one of the sources told the outlet.

Where will the funds go? The issuance will help the authority settle arrears it owes to Banque Misr and the National Bank of Egypt,one of the sources said.

NUCA maintains its spot as the biggest player in the securitization market: NUCA hasbeen setting records in the securitization market in recent years, issuing a total of EGP 70 bn of securities since 2019. The authority last closed a EGP 15 bn securitized bond issuance in November, in what was the second and final issuance of a EGP 30 bn program. It also set new records for the country’s biggest securitized bond issuance in 2020 with a EGP 10 bn issuance and again in 2022 with a EGP 20 bn transaction.

Plenty of corporate sukuk issuances are also in the pipeline: Five companies are in talks with the Financial Regulatory Authority (FRA) to move ahead with sukuk issuances worth a combined EGP 10 bn, the FRA’s Central Administration for Finance head, Sayed Abdel Fadil, said earlier this month. Contact Financial Holding, MNT-Halan’s Tasaheel, GB Capital, and Rawasi Urban Development are reportedly among the interested companies.

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