Capinnova Investment Bank, the Shari’a compliant investment banking arm of BBK, has offered a $16.5 million bridge financing facility to support the financing of an upcoming hospitality project in Makkah.

The project, which also includes a hotel, is located 1.3 km away from the Haram, and is in the final stages of completion, the company said in a statement.

The development will be the first of its kind offering Muslims (including non-GCC residents) an opportunity to invest in the project, said a statement from Capinnova.

“We are delighted to have participated in this prestigious project in the holy city, which turned out to be a rather complex and novel structure. The project will be the first to a series of transactions primarily focusing on Makkah’s religious hospitality market,' remarked Jamal Hijres, chief executive officer of Capinnova.

The creative structure guarantees returns for foreign investors from a hotel asset in the holy city through investing in a Cayman Island (Special Purpose Vehicle), he added.

Furthermore, Capinnova has also been appointed as the exclusive marketing agent to place the Cayman Island SPV’s shares, which derives 35 per cent returns from the Makkah hotel assets.

Capinnova, Hijres said, is also planning to utilize the broad network of its parent BBK to identify potential investors, offering them a highly-rewarding secured structured product that meets both the spiritual rewards as well as maximization of investors’ wealth.-TradeArabia News Service