Azerbaijan Investment Holding and ICD sign MoU

The Islamic Corporation for the Development of the Private Sector (ICD), the private sector arm of the Islamic Development Bank Group (IsDBG), and Azerbaijan Investment Holding (AIH) have signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) to establish a framework of cooperation between the two parties for the furtherance of their respective mandates in several areas of financing and investments, Report informs, citing the AIH.

The MoU was signed by Ayman Amin Sejiny, CEO of ICD, and Mr. Ruslan Alikhanov, CEO of AIH.

Under the MoU, both parties will co-operate in exploring the possibility of supporting the companies under the AIH portfolio for the potential issuance of Sukuk.

A Sukuk is an Islamic financial certificate, similar to a bond in Western finance, that complies with Islamic religious law, commonly known as Sharia.

"The Memorandum of Understanding we sign today is the beginning of a relationship in which we learn with and from each other through cooperation in different areas. The collaboration with ICD will allow us to explore the prospect of financing current and future projects of the portfolio companies and thus contribute to economic growth and sustainable development of the country," Alikhanov said.

According to Ayman Amin Sejiny, Azerbaijan is a key strategic member country for ICD: "We hope, via this partnership, we will increase our presence in Azerbaijan. This MoU will greatly enhance the development of capital markets in Azerbaijan and facilitate economic development resulting in a robust private sector. As such, this partnership perfectly suits the long-term goals of the ICD, and we are happy to be working with AIH toward the achievement of this worthy cause".

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