Khazanah Nasional Berhad, the investment holding arm of the Malaysian government, yesterday listed its $850 million sukuk on the Dubai International Financial Exchange (DIFX).

It is the first sukuk, or Islamic bond, from outside the exchange's region to be listed on the DIFX and underlines the DIFX's stature as the world's largest exchange for sukuk by value, now at $12.78 billion.

Per E. Larsson, Chief Executive of the DIFX, said: "The listing of Khazanah's sukuk, the first from outside the Middle East on the DIFX, is a landmark event for the exchange, which now has 46 per cent of all listed sukuk by value."

"The sukuk market continues to show dramatic growth and innovation on the DIFX, positioning Dubai and the Dubai International Financial Centre as the global hub for Islamic finance," he added.

Khazanah said about 50 per cent of its sukuk was allocated to investors in the Middle East.

Hamed Ali, Executive Officer of the DIFX, said: "Over $15 billion of sukuk have been issued globally so far this year, more than the whole of 2005. The investor base is international as well as regional and we expect this asset class to maintain its rapid growth."

Khazanah's sukuk is the 10th sukuk listed on the DIFX. The other nine are from the DIFX region, from issuers in Kuwait, Saudi Arabia and the UAE. The DIFX region includes the whole of the Middle East, North Africa and the Indian subcontinent.