Corporate Sukuk and Private Debt as Growth-Financing Tools for Saudi Enterprises under Vision 2030

References

[1] Financial Sector Development Program. Annual Report 2024. Riyadh: Kingdom of Saudi Arabia; 2025.

[2] Capital Market Authority. Annual Report 2024. Riyadh: Capital Market Authority; 2025.

[3] Saudi Exchange. Annual Statistical Report 2024. Riyadh: Saudi Exchange; 2025.

[4] Saudi Exchange. Quarterly Debt Market Report, Q4 2024. Riyadh: Saudi Exchange; 2024.

[5] National Debt Management Center. Annual Borrowing Plan 2025. Riyadh: NDMC; 2025.

[6] Ministry of Finance. Budget Statement for Fiscal Year 2025. Riyadh: Ministry of Finance; 2024.

[7] International Monetary Fund. Saudi Arabia: 2024 Article IV Consultation. IMF Country Report No. 24/280. Washington, DC; 2024.

[8] Saudi Central Bank. Fifty-Ninth Annual Report. Riyadh: Saudi Central Bank; 2024.

[9] Small and Medium Enterprises General Authority. SME Monitor: Fourth Quarter 2024. Riyadh; 2025.

[10] OECD. Financing SMEs and Entrepreneurs 2020: An OECD Scoreboard. Paris; 2020. doi:10.1787/061fe03d-en.

[11] OECD. Financing SMEs and Entrepreneurs Scoreboard: 2025 Highlights. Paris; 2025.

[12] OECD. Corporate Bond Markets in Asia. OECD Capital Market Series. Paris; 2024.

[13] OECD. The Role and Rights of Debtholders in Corporate Governance. Corporate Governance Working Papers No. 23. Paris; 2022. doi:10.1787/d6b7cca5-en.

[14] OECD. Corporate Bond Market Trends, Emerging Risks and Monetary Policy. OECD Capital Market Series. Paris; 2020. doi:10.1787/9bb44a6b-en.

[15] International Islamic Financial Market. Sukuk Report: A Comprehensive Study of the Global Sukuk Market. Manama; 2024.

[16] Islamic Financial Services Board. Islamic Financial Services Industry Stability Report 2024. Kuala Lumpur; 2024.

[17] Yildirim S, Yildirim DC, Diboglu P. Does sukuk market development promote economic growth? PSU Research Review. 2020;4(3):209-218. doi:10.1108/PRR-03-2020-0011.

[18] Gedikli A, Erdogan F, Tas CY. An investigation of sukuk in the GCC countries. Bilimname. 2020;42:7-40. doi:10.28949/bilimname.799483.

[19] Uddin MH, Kabir SH, Hossain MS. Which firms do prefer Islamic debt? An analysis and evidence from global sukuk and bond issuing firms. Emerging Markets Review. 2020;44:100712. doi:10.1016/j.ememar.2020.100712.

[20] Abdul Halim Z, Xu S, Abdul Majid N. Earnings management around Islamic bonds issuance. Quarterly Review of Economics and Finance. 2020;78:69-82. doi:10.1016/j.qref.2020.03.003.

[21] Ashraf D, Rizwan MS, Azmat S. Not one but three decisions in sukuk issuance: understanding the role of ownership and governance. Pacific-Basin Finance Journal. 2021;69:101423. doi:10.1016/j.pacfin.2020.101423.

[22] Hossain M, Uddin MH, Kabir S. Sukuk and bond puzzle: an analysis with characteristics-matched portfolios. Emerging Markets Finance and Trade. 2021;57(13):3792-3817. doi:10.1080/1540496X.2019.1706478.

[23] Majumdar S, Puthiya R. Role of signalling in issuance of sukuk versus conventional bonds: evidence from the UAE. International Journal of Islamic and Middle Eastern Finance and Management. 2021;14(5):967-981. doi:10.1108/IMEFM-02-2020-0093.

[24] Smaoui H, Mimouni K. Factors affecting sukuk market development: empirical evidence from sukuk-issuing economies. International Journal of Islamic and Middle Eastern Finance and Management. 2021;15(5):884-902. doi:10.1108/IMEFM-03-2020-0105.

[25] Alregab H. The role of corporate governance in attracting foreign investment: Saudi-listed firms in light of Vision 2030. International Journal of Finance and Economics. 2023;28(2):1566-1583. doi:10.1002/ijfe.2420.

[26] Khan S, Akhtar T, Qasem A. Dynamics of capital-structure determinants: empirical evidence from GCC countries. Future Business Journal. 2024;10:107. doi:10.1186/s43093-024-00394-6.

[27] Almaskati N. Loans versus bonds: do GCC firms benefit from going public? Middle East Development Journal. 2025;17(1):158-168. doi:10.1080/17938120.2025.2487749.

[28] Bugshan A, Bakry W. Does being Shariah-compliant affect capital-structure decisions? Evidence from emerging markets. Journal of Islamic Accounting and Business Research. 2025;16(1):107-124.

[29] Alsharif M, Alnori F. How do the capital structure and adjustment speed of Islamic banks differ from conventional banks? Evidence from the GCC region. Humanities and Social Sciences Communications. 2025;12:631. doi:10.1057/s41599-025-04972-z.

[30] Zhang Y, Li X. Digital inclusive finance and corporate debt financing: empirical evidence from China. Economic Analysis and Policy. 2025;86:494-509. doi:10.1016/j.eap.2025.03.055.

@article{1720147,
      author = {Junaid Mahesar},
      title = {Corporate Sukuk and Private Debt as Growth-Financing Tools for Saudi Enterprises under Vision 2030},
      journal = {Iconic Research And Engineering Journals},
      year = {2026},
      volume = {10},
      number = {1},
      pages = {3071-3083},
      issn = {2456-8880},
      url = {https://www.irejournals.com/formatedpaper/1720147.pdf},
      abstract = {Saudi enterprises require financing channels that can support expansion, innovation and regional development without concentrating risk in bank balance sheets or relying solely on public investment. This review examines corporate sukuk and private debt as complementary growth-financing tools under Vision 2030. It develops an issuer-centred framework covering strategic fit, financial readiness, instrument design, investor selection, liquidity resilience and governance. Evidence published between 2020 and 2025 indicates that sukuk can broaden access to institutional and faith-aligned capital, lengthen maturities and create repeatable market benchmarks, while private debt can provide tailored covenants, confidentiality, execution certainty and financing for companies that are not ready for public issuance. Their benefits are not automatic. Sukuk transactions require credible cash flows, suitable legal and Shariah structures, transparent disclosure and sufficient scale. Private debt requires disciplined leverage limits, independent valuation, lender diversification and protections against refinancing concentration. The review argues that firms should select instruments according to asset life, cash-flow visibility, ownership preferences, growth stage and governance capacity rather than headline coupon alone. A staged framework is proposed in which companies progress from bank dependence and bilateral direct lending to private placements, corporate sukuk and repeat market access. Policy priorities include issuer-readiness programmes, proportionate disclosure, credit enhancement, qualified-investor channels, improved secondary liquidity and stronger restructuring infrastructure. Together, corporate sukuk and well-governed private debt can mobilise domestic savings, finance productive enterprise growth and strengthen Saudi Arabia's non-oil economy.},
      keywords = {Saudi Arabia, Corporate Sukuk, Private Debt, Direct Lending, Enterprise Growth, Issuer Readiness, Vision 2030},
      month = {July},
      doi = {https://doi.org/10.64388/IREV10I1-1720147}
  }