Clifford Chance

Clifford Chance advises on Sabana REIT's convertible sukuk

Leading international law firm Clifford Chance has advised Morgan Stanley as sole lead manager and sole bookrunner on Sabana Shari'ah Compliant Industrial Real Estate Investment Trust (Sabana REIT)'s SGD80 million 4.5 per cent convertible sukuk due 2017.

This transaction represents a number of firsts, including being the first sukuk convertible into units in a real estate investment trust and the first convertible sukuk issuance in Singapore. The transaction was also the first convertible sukuk issuance globally since 2009.

"Islamic Finance is becoming more sophisticated and we have seen the development of both hybrid sukuk as well as more sophisticated convertible sukuk such as this," said Capital Markets partner Matt Fairclough who was the lead partner on the transaction. "We will continue to see these sorts of developments as the Islamic Finance industry continues to grow, including here in Asia."

Sabana REIT is listed on the Singapore Stock Exchange and its principal activities include investing in income-producing real estate used for industrial purposes, as well as real estate-related assets, in line with Shari’a investment principles. Sabana REIT is currently the biggest listed Shari'a compliant REIT in the world.

The team was led by Hong Kong partner Matt Fairclough and senior associate Gregory Man. Support was also provided by Dubai partner and Global Head of Islamic Finance Qudeer Latif and by Singapore partner Raymond Tong. The team also included senior associate Sandeep Puri and associates Siu Fang Ng and Ying Chiang Chong.

A separate Clifford Chance team comprising partner Connie Heng and senior associate James Booth also acted for Citicorp International Limited as delegate.