Qatar’s incumbent telecom operator, Ooredoo, has launched a $1.25bn Islamic bond.

The bond, or sukuk, will mature on 3 December, 2018 and will have a profit rate of 3.039%. The sukuk will be listed on the Official List of the Irish Stock Exchange and admitted to trading on its Main Securities Market.

Net proceeds from the sale of the sukuk will be used by Ooredoo for general corporate purposes including re-financing existing debts.

Dr Nasser Marafih, CEO, Ooredoo Group, said: “The strong demand we saw for Ooredoo’s first sukuk from investors demonstrates the strength of Ooredoo’s business and the growing maturity of sukuk certificates as a debt instrument in the global financial markets. The sukuk further diversifies our investor base and enhances our financial flexibility to execute our business strategy.”

Ooredoo hired DBS Bank Ltd, Deutsche Bank AG London Branch, HSBC Bank plc, QInvest LLC and QNB Capital LLC to act as joint lead managers and joint bookrunners for the offering.

The sukuk is to be issued by Ooredoo Tamweel Limited, a special purpose vehicle wholly owned by Ooredoo.