R3 Partners with Dubai Fintech Firm to Revolutionize the Sukuk Market

Enterprise software firm R3 recently entered into a strategic partnership with a Dubai-based fintech firm, Wethaq. The partnership aims to bring together a platform for issuing and trading Sukuk securities by utilizing R3 Corda’s blockchain.   

Wethaq’s platform will be building the next generation of financial market infrastructure for issuers, investors, central banks, and regulators to transact easily in Islamic capital markets. Sukuk, a type of financial certificate similar to a bond, complies with Islamic Sharia Law. Sukuk represents partial ownership in an asset, whereas a bond is a debt obligation.  

The issuance of Sukuk can be modified by the partnership, as it is heavily regulated and requires a substantial amount of time for issuance.   

R3 CEO David Rutter believes that R3 Corda could change the economy in Saudi Arabia and the Middle East. He mentioned:  

“Blockchain is driving an unprecedented period of innovation across capital markets, with more assets moving towards complete digitization. As such, there is no better time to seize the advantages of blockchain to transform global financial systems. Saudi Arabia and the wider Middle East region are areas where we see huge potential for Corda to modernize the economy, and our partnership with Wethaq is a step towards achieving that.”  

Wethaq CEO Mohammed Alsehli stated:  

“Our joint focus is on building world-class financial infrastructure in Saudi Arabia, in alignment with the Kingdom’s Vision 2030, and the UAE, pursuant to their ambitious fintech agenda, before we expand to the entire Middle East and Southeast Asia.”

 

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