Allen & Overy advises on Luxembourg’s first sukuk

Following a burst of activity in the sukuk market, Allen & Overy has advised on three debut Islamic bond issues from non-Islamic sovereigns. Luxembourg, following Hong Kong and South Africa, is the latest, to bring a Shariah-compliant bond offering to the market in the first euro denominated sukuk of its kind.

The deal throws light on the growing appetite for Islamic bond issuance. Allen & Overy advised the Luxembourg Government in connection with the sukuk offering with BNP Paribas and HSBC acting as joint lead managers and Banque Internationale à Luxembourg S.A. and QInvest LLC acting as co-managers on the transaction.

The AAA rated five-year trust certificates will be used by Luxembourg Treasury Securities SA for the acquisition of real estate assets from the State of the Grand Duchy of Luxembourg. The certificates were offered to institutional investors internationally and the sukuk is listed on the Luxembourg Stock Exchange and will be traded on the Euro MTF Market.

The Allen & Overy team was led by capital market partners Frank Mausen (Luxembourg) and Jamie Durham (London) together with tax partner Patrick Mischo (Luxembourg), assisted by Serge Hoffmann (counsel, Luxembourg), Paul Péporté (counsel, Luxembourg), Evelina Palgan (senior associate, Luxembourg), Julie Carbiener (senior associate, Luxembourg), Cieren Leigh (senior associate, London) and Victoria Elinson (associate, London).