OQGN set to be largest company on MSX Sharia index

Muscat: The prospectus for the forthcoming OQGN IPO, published on September 18, confirms that the OQGN share offer is Sharia-compliant.

Given OQGN’s expected market capitalization of up to OMR606 million at the top of the price range, the company is expected to become the largest entity on the MSX Sharia Index, when it lists in late October. The addition to the MSX Sharia Index will of course be contingent on the completion of the relevant assessment by MSX post-IPO.

In its Prospectus, OQGN details the pronouncement by the Shariyah Review Bureau, a Shariah Advisory firm licensed by the Central Bank of Bahrain, which confirms that, in its view, based on the circumstances as of the date of the pronouncement, the Offer is Sharia compliant in accordance with pertinent Sharia principles of the AAOIFI Sharia standards as of the date of the Prospectus. A copy of the aforementioned report by the Shariya Review Bureau is available on the OQGN IPO portal for interested parties.

Notably, a relative outperformance of the S&P GCC Sharia Index in comparison to the S&P GCC Composite Index has consistently been seen in the GCC market over the last 5 years. This outperformance by the S&P GCC Sharia Index has mainly been attributed to (i) the presence of companies from resilient and defensive sectors, and (ii) the relatively low leverage of underlying companies in the S&P GCC Sharia Index.
OQGN Vice President of Finance Khalid Nasser Al Qassabi said, “Being Sharia-compliant has been a fundamental part of our planning for this IPO.”

OQGN’s IPO follows the new financing agreements signed by OQGN in June, with a consortium comprising 16 local and regional banks in June this year, which was considered one of the largest syndicates of Sharia-compliant financing in Oman.