Flip through the latest issue of Gulf Weekly.
Bahrain-based Ithmaar Development Company, the development arm of the Ithmaar banking group, Kuwait-based Al Safat Investment Company (ASIC), the parent company of Al Safat Group, and Bahrain-based Arabian Ventures have launched a $500 million Sharia-compliant fund targeting real estate assets in Latin America. The closed-ended fund will have an initial term of five years.
"In the last few years economic stability has started to take hold in Central and Latin America, which has resulted in unprecedented growth in the region's real estate sector. The robust development of capital markets in Mexico, Brazil, Argentina and Costa Rica has increased liquidity, a clear indicator of positive, economic progress," said Ithmaar Bank chairman Khalid Abdulla Janahi.
Waleed Ahmad Al Sharhan, chairman, Al Safat Investment Company said: "A long-awaited period of sustained economic growth is finally occurring in much of Latin America. After decades of failed economic policies, much of the region is slowly entering an era of stability and productivity. This growth has direct co-relation to the upward spiral in the real estate sector in the region. Real estate development activity is gaining traction, although demand outstrips the supply."
Arabian Ventures CEO, Mishal Al Jarallah added: "Central and Latin America have become increasingly market friendly in recent years. This trend, along with the political stability that many countries in the region are currently enjoying, has created significant opportunities in many economic sectors, not least in the booming real estate sector."
