New Islamic banks in Oman are bolstering their balance sheets to challenge the country’s larger conventional lenders after the sultanate allowed sharia-compliant lending for the first time last year.
This month, Al Izz Islamic bank, Oman’s second dedicated Islamic bank, opened subscription for its initial public offering of 40 per cent of the lender. So far, it says interest has been strong. Before that, in June, Bank Nizwa, the first Islamic bank in Oman, attracted 681m rials ($1.77bn) of bids, 11 times what was needed, in a successful share sale………………………………………..Full Article: Source