Boursa Kuwait Welcomes Listing of Al-Manar Financing and Leasing Company in the Main Market

Boursa Kuwait has announced the listing of Al-Manar
Financing and Leasing Company in the main market, making it the first Islamic
financing institution to go public on the stock exchange after introducing its
market segmentation into premier, main and auction markets.
This listing follows the market reforms Boursa Kuwait introduced which led to the
leading equity index compiler S&P Dow Jones Indices (S&P DJI) announcement to
include Kuwait in its Global Equity Indices with an Emerging Market classification
later this year.
Commenting on the listing, Mr. Khaled Abdulrazzaq AlKhaled, Chief Executive
Officer, Boursa Kuwait, said: We are pleased to welcome the listing of Al-Manar
Financing and Leasing Company on Boursa Kuwait, which confirms the market’s
prominent position as a preferred listing destination. It is also a true testimony to
the progress we have made in improving the infrastructure and regulatory
environment, and implementing the best international practices in transparency
across our operations towards creating an attractive investment platform and
restoring investor confidence. In addition, the listing will serve as a motivation to
continue seeking new ways to develop the capital market in line with our strategic
objectives that include improving the business environment, establishing a
diversified and wider issuer base, and increasing the depth and breadth of
products. We are also optimistic that the listing of a reputed firm like Al-Manar
Financing and Leasing Company in the main market will encourage more Islamic
financing institutions to list their shares on Boursa Kuwait.”
Mr. Abdulla Saud Al Bader, CEO of Al-Manar Financing and Leasing Company
thanked Kuwait’s Capital Markets Authority and the management of Boursa
Kuwait for their cooperation, starting from the preparation phase to the listing. He
also thanked Kuwait Financial Center “Markaz” for managing the listing process
effectively in its role as the manager and consultant for the listing and Al-Hossam
Legal Law Firm in its role as the legal consultant for the listing process.
Mr. Al Bader added: “At Al-Manar Financing and Leasing Company, our biggest
priority has always been to widen our customer base and offer unique and
innovative financing solutions. We expect that the listing of the company on
Boursa Kuwait will lead to significant increase in our market value and will help
attract more investors in the near future.”
Mr. Manaf Abdulaziz Alhajeri, CEO of Markaz, commented: “We are delighted
that our listing services to Al-Manar Financing and Leasing Company contributed
to the success of the listing process, offering a unique investment opportunity to
investors and adding value to the market. We would like to thank the company’s
management for placing its trust and confidence in our abilities to manage the
listing, which stems from our rich portfolio in the field of capital markets and listings,
whereby ‘Markaz’ managed the listing of several Kuwaiti and non-Kuwaiti
companies on the exchange since 1997. I would also like to extend our deepest
gratitude to Boursa Kuwait team and the Capital Markets Authority for their
cooperation to complete the process successfully.”
According to Al-Manar’s financial statements, Al-Manar Financing and Leasing
Co. K.S.C.C. was established on October 6, 2003, by a number of institutions and
individuals to offer various investment and financing products and instruments. A
few years later, the company introduced Sharia-compliant financial services
tailored for retail customers and made financial investments in different sectors,
such as insurance, leasing, and investments.
During the global financial crisis of 2008-2009, Al-Manar Financing and Leasing
Company remained resilient and continued its activities by restructuring its loans.
In the following years, the company maintained the quality of its credit portfolio
through the compliance of all regulatory requirements to meet any doubtful debt.
This positively reflected the company’s credit rating as of December 2014 when
Capital Intelligence (CI) raised the company’s rating from ‘B+’ to ‘BB-’. In
November 2016, CI upgraded the company’s credit rating to ‘BB’ in recognition
of the company’s stability over the past five years.
Al-Manar Financing and Leasing Company’s capital as at 30 September 2018 was
KD 30.875 million, and total assets were valued at KD 44.7 million, while liabilities
stood at KD 9.35 million. The company achieved earnings of KD 5.58 fils per share
for the fiscal year 2017. Its investor base includes Qatar Investment & Projects
Development Holding Company with a 18.39% share and Wafra International
Investment Company (Clients’ Account) at a 14.58% share and Financial Assets
Company – Bahrain at a 13.74% share.