Sakana addresses MENA Housing Finance Forum

The CEO of Sakana Holistic Housing Solutions, was invited to speak on expanding role of Islamic housing finance and recent trends and experiences.

Mr. R. Lakshmanan, CEO of Sakana, commented: 'The Islamic mortgage finance industry is receptive to the changing needs of buyers and the GCC's evolving market conditions. It is clear that in a competitive property market, we have to offer a comprehensive portfolio of flexible sharia'a-compliant instruments perfectly suited to today's dynamic situation and the increasingly financially sophisticated consumer.'

Mr. R. Lakshmanan talked about how Islamic finance instruments can assist buyers across the spectrum of property purchases from ready property, to property under construction or yet to be constructed, whether the property is to be used as a home, business or investment. Financial institutions can also offer schemes that allow existing home owners to release capital for use in home improvements, additional real estate purchases etc.

It was made clear during the conference that the GCC real estate sector is changing dramatically and rapidly and that financiers must keep abreast of the trends and offer the appropriate services and products. Significant market changes include the fact that buyers now consider property for a bigger variety of uses including buy-to-let, timeshare, or holiday homes, and the influx of inter-GCC and international investment in real estate, as well as the relaxation of property ownership restrictions in many of the GCC states.

The conference was well attended by a cross-section of delegates from major regional financial institutions and regulators as well as the Arab Monetary Fund, World Bank, demonstrating their commitment to exploring current and future issues facing the dynamic mortgage finance industry.