Dechert Advises Kingdom of Bahrain on Bond and Sukuk Program Establishments and Initial Issuances Amounting to US$2 Billion

Dechert LLP advised the Kingdom of Bahrain, acting through the Ministry of Finance and National Economy, in connection with the establishment of the Kingdom’s Global Medium Term Note Programme and the inaugural Notes issuance, as well as the establishment of the Trust Certificate Programme, which are Sharia-compliant securities, by CBB International Sukuk Programme Company and the inaugural Trust Certificates issuance.

The issuances consisted of US$1 billion 5.625% Notes due 2031 US$1 billion Trust Certificates due 2027. The Notes and Certificates are listed on the regulated market of Euronext Dublin, and the Certificates were issued under a combined Ijara and Murabaha structure.

The Kingdom of Bahrain was advised by a London-based corporate team consisting of partner Patrick Lyons, senior associate Jennifer Rees and associates Amy Rees and Eleanor Pike. “We were pleased to be part of the team that established these two significant programmes for Bahrain, which will allow the Kingdom to access the capital markets on a more nimble and efficient basis in the future,” said Patrick Lyons.

Dechert has advised the Kingdom of Bahrain on all of its international capital markets issuances since September 2017. 

Dechert has a strong track record advising on innovative capital markets transactions in the emerging markets, and is a leading practice in the representation of sovereigns from the Middle East and North Africa region. Dechert is ranked by Cbonds as a Leading Issuer and Arranger Legal Advisor for Emerging Market International Bonds and recently won the Financial Times’s Innovative Lawyer award for “Accessing New Markets and Capital."