Oman opens OMR100mn sukuk sale at 4.85% for seven years

Summary

• Oman is offering its 12th local sovereign sukuk, OMR100mn, upsizable by OMR50mn.
• Seven-year paper carries a fixed 4.85% annual profit rate, paid quarterly.
• The pricing sets a fresh rial benchmark for government debt maturing in 2033.

The latest

A fixed profit rate of 4.85% a year over seven years anchors Oman's 12th local sovereign sukuk issue, which opened for subscription Sunday at OMR100 million with room to upsize by a further OMR50 million. Oman Sovereign Sukuk Company is running the sale on behalf of the government, with the books closing on 25 October.

Details

• The size: The base offering is OMR100 million, with an option to increase the issue by no more than OMR50 million, according to Times of Oman and Muscat Daily. At the official peg of 0.3845 rial to the dollar, that is roughly $260 million, rising to about $390 million if the upsize option is exercised in full.
• The pricing: The sukuk carry a fixed profit rate of 4.85% per annum over a seven-year tenor. That rate sets a reference point for rial-denominated government borrowing at the seven-year maturity, the level against which banks and institutional investors will price comparable local debt.
• The payment schedule: Profit is distributed quarterly rather than annually, on 29 January, 29 April, 29 July and 29 October each year through the life of the instrument. The structure gives holders four distribution dates a year, a cash-flow profile that typically suits local banks and treasury portfolios.
• The timeline: Subscription runs from 19 October 2026 through 25 October 2026. Issue and settlement fall on 29 October 2026, and the paper matures on 29 October 2033, giving investors a four-day window to place orders before books close.
• The retail cap: Subscriptions through the non-competitive track are capped at OMR10,000 per investor, according to the two Omani newspapers. The limit effectively ring-fences a small-ticket allocation for individual buyers while leaving the competitive track to institutions bidding on price.
• The issuer: The sale is being conducted by Oman Sovereign Sukuk Company acting on behalf of the Government of the Sultanate of Oman, under the Ministry of Finance. The company is the vehicle the state uses for its local Islamic debt programme, now in its twelfth issue.
• The structure: As sukuk rather than conventional bonds, the instruments pay a profit rate instead of interest, which widens the buyer base to Islamic banks and Sharia-compliant funds that cannot hold conventional government paper. The issue is denominated in rials, not dollars, keeping it within the domestic market.
• Not disclosed: The announcement did not identify the arranging banks or set out a target split between the competitive and non-competitive tracks, nor did it say whether the OMR50 million upsize option would be triggered automatically on oversubscription or left to the issuer's discretion.

Background

Oman has built a recurring local sukuk programme as one channel for domestic financing, issuing in rials to local banks, funds and individual investors. This is the twelfth issue in that series, sold through Oman Sovereign Sukuk Company on the government's behalf.

Between the lines

The 4.85% fixed rate over seven years is the number the market will carry forward: once settled, it becomes the live reference for rial sovereign debt at that maturity. The OMR50 million upsize option signals the issuer expects demand to run above the base size, and the OMR10,000 retail cap suggests the bulk of the paper is aimed at institutional balance sheets rather than individual savers.

What's next

Books close 25 October 2026, with issue and settlement on 29 October. Watch whether the OMR50 million upsize option is exercised and the final allocation split, before the first quarterly profit payment falls due on 29 January.

Source: Times of Oman, Muscat Daily, Oman Sovereign Sukuk Company