IILM SHORT-TERM SUKUK PORTFOLIO HITS US$6.795 BLN

KUALA LUMPUR, Feb 3 (Bernama) --  The International Islamic Liquidity Management Corporation (IILM), the world’s leading issuer of shariah-compliant short-term liquidity instruments, said its outstanding sukuk portfolio reached a record US$6.795 billion (US$1 = RM3.93), up 64 per cent from US$4.14 billion a year ago.

In a statement today, IILM attributed the rise to its latest auction, which successfully issued and reissued US$1.01 billion in short-term sukuk across one-, three-, six- and twelve-month tenors, highlighting sustained global demand for high-quality Islamic liquidity instruments.

The four series were priced at 3.85 per cent for US$290 million (1-month), 3.87 per cent for US$480 million (3-month), 3.85 per cent for US$210 million (6-month), and 3.45 per cent for US$30 million (12-month).

Demand was broad-based, with participation from the IILM’s network of primary dealers and institutional investors across multiple jurisdictions. Total bids reached US$2.67 billion, yielding an average bid-to-cover ratio of 2.6, reflecting continued investor confidence amid evolving market conditions.

The auction marked IILM’s third sukuk issuance of 2026, bringing total year-to-date issuances to US$3.275 billion across 12 series of varying maturities. All issuances were conducted under the IILM’s US$8.5 billion short-term sukuk programme, rated A-1 by S&P Global Ratings and F1 by Fitch Ratings.

IILM chief executive officer Mohamad Safri Shahul Hamid said the record outstanding balance reflects strong demand and the speed with which investors are deploying liquidity into the programme.

“The increase was also supported by the onboarding of a high-quality short-term asset under a new funding format introduced in 2025,” he said.

While outstanding levels will naturally fluctuate with maturities, the sukuk programme provides issuance capacity of up to US$8.5 billion, offering flexible, scalable funding for sovereign, sovereign-linked and supranational issuers.

Through continued asset diversification, IILM said it remains focused on strengthening the resilience and effectiveness of the global Islamic liquidity infrastructure.

The corporation regularly issues short-term sukuk across varying tenors to meet the liquidity needs of institutions offering Islamic financial services.

-- BERNAMA