Gems Education repays $200m sukuk that was issued in 2013

Gems Education yesterday said it repaid a $200 million sukuk as it plans to delist the Islamic bond from Nasdaq Dubai and the Irish Stock Exchange.

The sukuk, which was issued in 2013, was the first funding the company raised from international capital markets and helped to finance its growth.

“When we raised the sukuk in 2013, our business operated 37 schools educating 79,000 students. In the intervening five years we have grown significantly,” said Dino Varkey, chief executive of Gems Education.

“Gems now owns and operates 49 schools and educates over 124,000 students in Mena.”

Gems Education and Hassana Investment Company, the arm of Saudi Arabia’s General Organisation for Social Insurance, in October signed a partnership to invest up to $800 million over the next decade to acquire and develop schools in the kingdom.

The agreement will provide places for up to 130,000 students and create employment opportunities for 16,000 people, 40 per cent of whom will be Saudi citizens.

The partnership, which includes the acquisition and upgrading of existing schools and construction of new facilities, was signed on the sidelines of the Future Investment Initiative summit that took place in Riyadh in October.

Blackstone, Fajr Capital of Dubai, Mumtalakat and the Varkey Group, a majority owner in the education provider, are considering selling some or all of their stakes in Gems in a deal that could value it at about $4 billion, Bloomberg reported in October.

Gems was slated to list in London but delayed its initial public offering, according to media reports in June.