RIYADH: Saudi Arabia’s National Debt Management Center redeemed SR17.1 billion ($4.5 billion) of domestic sukuk before maturity and simultaneously issued SR17.2 billion in replacement sukuk across five tranches, extending the government’s debt maturity profile through 2041.
The liability-management transaction covered sukuk originally due to mature between 2026 and 2030 and forms part of the Kingdom’s strategy to smooth future repayments while strengthening the domestic debt market, NDMC said in a statement.
The new issuance comprises five tranches: approximately SR1.45 billion maturing in 2031, SR1.62 billion in 2033, and SR10.55 billion in 2036, as well as SR1.74 billion in 2039, and SR1.80 billion in 2041.
The move comes as Saudi Arabia’s debt market expands rapidly, with outstanding debt securities projected to reach $600 billion by the end of 2026, making the Kingdom the largest US dollar debt and sukuk issuer among emerging markets.
A recent Fitch Ratings report also found that outstanding Saudi debt surpassed $520 billion in 2025, up 21 percent year on year, with sukuk accounting for roughly 62 percent of the total.
In a release, NDMC stated: “This initiative continues NDMC’s efforts to strengthen the domestic debt market and enables NDMC to exercise its role in managing government debt obligations and future maturities.”
It added: “It also aligns NDMC’s efforts with other initiatives to enhance and optimize public finances in the medium and long term.”
The Ministry of Finance and NDMC appointed HSBC Saudi Arabia, SNB Capital, and Al Rajhi Capital, as joint lead managers for the transaction, along with AlJazira Capital and Alinma Capital.
NDMC sukuk strategy
This follows a pattern of regular liability-management exercises by NDMC, which has previously used similar early-redemption and reissuance transactions, including a May 2025 transaction that combined an early redemption of approximately SR60.4 billion in outstanding sukuk with a new issuance of about SR60.3 billion, to extend the Kingdom’s debt maturity profile.
In its latest sovereign review, Fitch affirmed Saudi Arabia’s long-term foreign-currency issuer default rating at “A+” with a Stable Outlook, citing the Kingdom’s strong fiscal balance sheet and substantial fiscal buffers. The agency said government debt and sovereign net foreign assets remain considerably stronger than the median for both the “A” and “AA” rating categories.
Fitch added that Saudi Arabia’s economy, particularly non-oil activity and public finances, has remained resilient despite regional geopolitical tensions.
