HSBC Saudi Arabia said it had solely arranged and issued the first ever Sukuk program worth SR1 billion ($267 million) for Almarai, the Gulf's biggest dairy firm by market value, based in the Kingdom.

A Sukuk program effectively allows a company to raise money by launching Sukuk into the market quickly and efficiently, and is ideal for issuers intending to access the market frequently and flexibly, said the Saudi bank in a statement.

The Sukuk program was set up for an amount up to the size of its paid up capital, the statement added.

HSBC Saudi also assisted Almarai in the debut issuance under this newly established program.

The bank held sole roles across the program and issuance. It acted as lead manager and bookrunner, program arranger, Shari'ah coordinator, sukuk holders' agent and payment administrator.

Fahad Alsaif, the head of Debt Capital Markets, HSBC Saudi Arabia, said: 'We are proud to have helped Almarai with putting this important funding platform in place, and in the extremely successful debut issuance.'

'This innovative program puts Almarai in line with its global peers and supports its ongoing financing requirements, freeing up bank capacity and securing long term funding in significant size.'

The orderbook, with a 4.7 times oversubscription, demonstrated the confidence investors have in Almarai as well as trust in the lead manager, HSBC, he added.-TradeArabia News Service