Emaar Malls Group, an arm of the Dubai-based Emaar Properties has begun holding meetings with investors regarding a potential sukuk (Islamic bond) issuance.

The meetings started on 8 June and will be held with fixed income investors from the Middle East, Asia and Europe.

A total of eight regional and international banks are arranging the meetings for the group. These are Dubai-based Dubai Islamic Bank, Emirates NBD Capital, Mashreq and Noor Bank, as well as Abu Dhabi-headquartered First Gulf Bank and National Bank of Abu Dhabi, the US’ Morgan Stanley and the UK’s Standard Chartered.

A US dollar sukuk may be issued following the meetings depending on market conditions.

The potential sukuk issuance follows news that Emaar Malls Group raised a $1.5bn Islamic loan through a consortium of UAE-based banks in early June.

The facility has been raised ahead of the planned initial public offering (IPO) of the property company’s shopping malls business on Dubai’s main stock exchange.

In a note to the Dubai Financial Market (DFM), Emaar Properties said the loan was raised to “optimise its capital structure” before the IPO.