Flip through the latest issue of Gulf Weekly.
A delegation from Shamil Bank visited Turkey to meet partners and institutional investors of its successful Bosphorus Modaraba (Modaraba), a Sharia compliant Modaraba launched last year to invest in lucrative real estate developments in Turkey.
The delegation from the Bahrain-based Shamil Bank included senior officials from the investment and private banking groups. During the two-day visit the delegation met with its Turkish development partners and investors to examine various real estate projects in Istanbul and Antalya.
The delegation visited the following sites as part of their visit: an office park development in Beylikduzu, a luxury homes development in Istinye, a budget housing project next to the Formula One track, and a golf resort and holiday homes development in Antalya.
Earlier this year Shamil Bank announced it had raised the $90 million capital required for its Modaraba, which has attracted strong interest from regional institutional investors seeking access to Turkey's high-growth real estate sector.
The Modaraba's primary focus is on residential and mixed-use real estate developments in Istanbul and secondary homes on the Turkish cost. The total cost of the projects targeted is valued at approximately $330 million.
In addition, the bank's delegation met with a selection of key institutional investors that constitute the Modaraba's 'Monitoring Board'.
A comprehensive presentation was made on the Modaraba's progress to the 'Monitoring Board' by Shamil Bank investment banking manager Hisham A Rahman Khalifa.
"The real estate market in Turkey, and in particular Istanbul and Antalya, has experienced considerable growth following the recovery from the 2002 economic crisis. Unlike other markets, the Turkish real estate market still maintains intrinsic value in ongoing developments and has not reached a stage of over-supply or rampant speculation. This in turn provides our investors with the confidence of achieving solid gains on the projects currently invested in by the Modaraba, with a total value of over $330 million. A 60 per cent projected return on investment is expected over the three year investment term of the Modaraba," said Mr Khalifa.
