Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund has opened the year’s funding playbook with a confident move in Islamic debt markets, locking in a $2 billion, 10-year benchmark sukuk at a slim 85 basis points over U.S. Treasuries.
That final pricing marked a sharp tightening from early guidance pitched around the T+120bps level, as investor appetite surged through the book-building process. Demand swelled to a peak of $13.1 billion before closing north of $10.9 billion, excluding interest from joint lead managers.
Structured as a wakala, the sukuk carries a 5.133% semi-annual coupon. The issue was offered at par, with yield and reoffer price aligned at 100.
The senior unsecured transaction is expected to carry ratings of Aa3 from Moody’s and A+ from Fitch, mirroring the fund’s own credit standing. PIF is named as the sukuk obligor, with SUCI Second Investment Company acting as trustee.
A broad syndicate of regional and international banks supported the deal, while global coordination was handled by Citi, JP Morgan and Standard Chartered. The certificates are set to list on the London Stock Exchange’s International Securities Market.
This issuance marks PIF’s first foray into debt markets this year, extending a recent run of fundraising that included a euro-denominated dual-tranche bond and a $2 billion 10-year conventional bond late last year. The latest sukuk reinforces the fund’s ability to command scale, pricing power and global attention in both Islamic and conventional markets.
