DUBAI: Dana Gas is set to become the first UAE company to fail to pay an Islamic bond on maturity, three sources familiar with the matter said, sending its stock and bond prices sharply lower.
The UAE’s largest listed natural gas firm, hit by payment delays from Egypt and Iraq’s Kurdistan region, will not repay a $ 920 million convertible sukuk, when it matures today, the sources said.
However, Sharjah-based Dana has won more time to hammer out a deal with bondholders, they added.
Dana Gas declined to comment.
Although indebted firms in the UAE have extended maturities on billions of dollars in bank loans since the onset of the financial crisis in 2008-09, no sukuk have been restructured or unpaid on maturity.
Saudi and Kuwaiti companies have defaulted on Islamic bonds in the past, leading to complex debt negotiations which have dragged on for years. Kuwait’s Investment Dar, which co-owns luxury carmaker Aston Martin, defaulted on a $ 100 million Islamic debt issue in 2009.
Dana has a $ 1 billion sukuk maturing on Oct. 31. It repurchased about $ 80 million of the sukuk in 2008, leaving $920 million outstanding.
The five-year sukuk, which was issued with a 7.5 percent coupon, has gained international interest as a majority of the debt is said to be owned by large investment firms including BlackRock Inc. and Ashmore Group.
A source said that London-based Spinnaker Capital was among large holders. An executive at Spinnaker in London said it does not own Dana Gas bonds currently and has not held them before. BlackRock owns about 30 percent of the outstanding sukuk, according to two separate market sources.
There is “absolutely no chance” of a white knight swooping in to repay the bond by the due date, a source close to the talks said.
In 2009, the Abu Dhabi government stepped in at the eleventh hour to help Dubai repay developer Nakheel’s $ 4.1 billion Islamic bond.
The sources said Dana, in which Crescent Petroleum owns a 20-percent stake, reached a standstill agreement with creditors in early October giving it six months to repay the bond.
Some creditors are preparing for a potential “post-default scenario,” one source familiar with the discussions said, in which no deal would be reached at all.
Shares in Dana fell 8.5 percent to AED0.43 on the Abu Dhabi bourse after the Reuters report before closing down 4.26 percent.
The shares have been battered by concerns over how Dana will find funds to repay the bond and limited communication from the company on the matter. The sukuk has a conversion price of AED1.926.
The sukuk, which is lightly traded, was quoted at a bid price of 68 cents on the dollar yesterday, down from 78 cents on the dollar on Monday, according to prices quoted by Nomura.
Dana is to issue a statement this week detailing its plans to restructure the bond, said two sources, who spoke on condition of anonymity as the matter is not public.
There was a “high probability” the Dana sukuk will be restructured, London-based investment firm Exotix said in a report earlier this year, adding its restructuring valuation on the privately-owned firm was 61.5 percent of par value.
Dana, which also has a 3-percent stake in Hungarian group MOL, is not seen as a strategic entity for the UAE and so any government support is unlikely.
In May, Dana said it wanted to find a consensual deal with sukukholders to repay the bond, and said it had hired Blackstone Group, Deutsche Bank and law firm Latham & Watkins as advisers.
Investors have hired Moelis and law firm Linklaters as advisers.
Dana, which has operations in the UAE, Egypt and Iraq’s Kurdistan region, says its cash flow has been affected by global economic conditions and regional events, including Egyptian unrest last year which delayed payments.
The company had a cash balance of AED 601 million ($ 164 million) as of June 30, 2012. Outstanding receivables on Egypt gas deliveries stood at AED 729 million and AED 1.2 billion in the Kurdistan region at that time.
In a recent interview, Dana board member and Crescent Chief Executive Majid Jafar said Egypt was paying the company for all fuel it was receiving from its operations and was optimistic outstanding payments would be settled.
Jafar said last week talks between the company and creditors were still ongoing, and have been “amicable and friendly.”
Dana Gas won’t repay $ 920 million sukuk
Dana Gas won’t repay $ 920 million sukuk
How AI and financial literacy are redefining the Saudi workforce
- Preparing people capable of navigating money and machines with confidence
ALKHOBAR: Saudi Arabia’s workforce is entering a transformative phase where digital fluency meets financial empowerment.
As Vision 2030 drives economic diversification, experts emphasize that the Kingdom’s most valuable asset is not just technology—but people capable of navigating both money and machines with confidence.
For Shereen Tawfiq, co-founder and CEO of Balinca, financial literacy is far from a soft skill. It is a cornerstone of national growth. Her company trains individuals and organizations through gamified simulations that teach financial logic, risk assessment, and strategic decision-making—skills she calls “the true language of empowerment.”
“Our projection builds on the untapped potential of Saudi women as entrepreneurs and investors,” she said. “If even 10–15 percent of women-led SMEs evolve into growth ventures over the next five years, this could inject $50–$70 billion into GDP through new job creation, capital flows, and innovation.”
Tawfiq, one of the first Saudi women to work in banking and later an adviser to the Ministry of Economy and Planning on private sector development, helped design early frameworks for the Kingdom’s venture-capital ecosystem—a transformation she describes as “a national case study in ambition.”
“Back in 2015, I proposed a 15-year roadmap to build the PE and VC market,” she recalled. “The minister told me, ‘you’re not ambitious enough, make it happen in five.’” Within years, Saudi Arabia had a thriving investment ecosystem supporting startups and non-oil growth.
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At Balinca, Tawfiq replaces theory with immersion. Participants make business decisions in interactive simulations and immediately see their financial impact.
“Balinca teaches finance by hacking the brain, not just feeding information,” she said. “Our simulations create what we call a ‘business gut feeling’—an intuitive grasp of finance that traditional training or even AI platforms can’t replicate.”
While AI can personalize lessons, she believes behavioral learning still requires human experience.
“AI can democratize access,” she said, “but judgment, ethics, and financial reasoning still depend on people. We train learners to use AI as a co-pilot, not a crutch.”
Her work aligns with a broader national agenda. The Financial Sector Development Program and Al Tamayyuz Academy are part of Vision 2030’s effort to elevate financial acumen across industries. “In Saudi Arabia, financial literacy is a national project,” she said. “When every sector thinks like a business, the nation gains stability.”
Jonathan Holmes, managing director for Korn Ferry Middle East, sees Saudi Arabia’s digital transformation producing a new generation of leaders—agile, data-literate, and unafraid of disruption.
“What we’re seeing in the Saudi market is that AI is tied directly to the nation’s economic growth story,” Holmes told Arab News. “Unlike in many Western markets where AI is viewed as a threat, here it’s seen as a catalyst for progress.”
Holmes noted that Vision 2030 and the national AI strategy are producing “younger, more dynamic, and more tech-fluent” executives who lead with speed and adaptability. Korn Ferry’s CEO Tracker Report highlighted a notable rise in first-time CEO appointments in Saudi Arabia’s listed firms, signaling deliberate generational renewal.
Korn Ferry research identifies six traits for AI-ready leadership: sustaining vision, decisive action, scaling for impact, continuous learning, addressing fear, and pushing beyond early success.
“Leading in an AI-driven world is ultimately about leading people,” Holmes said. “The most effective leaders create clarity amid ambiguity and show that AI’s true power lies in partnership, not replacement.”
He believes Saudi Arabia’s young workforce is uniquely positioned to model that balance. “The organizations that succeed are those that anchor AI initiatives to business outcomes, invest in upskiling, and move quickly from pilots to enterprise-wide adoption,” he added.
DID YOU KNOW?
• Saudi women-led SMEs could add $50–$70 billion to GDP over five years if 10–15% evolve into growth ventures.
• AI in Saudi Arabia is seen as a catalyst for progress, unlike in many Western markets where it is often viewed as a threat.
• Saudi Arabia is adopting skills-based models, matching employees to projects rather than fixed roles, making flexibility the new currency of success.
The convergence of Tawfiq’s financial empowerment approach and Holmes’s AI leadership vision points to one central truth: the Kingdom’s greatest strategic advantage lies in human capital that can think analytically and act ethically.
“Financial literacy builds confidence and credibility,” Tawfiq said. “It transforms participants from operators into leaders.” Holmes echoes this sentiment: “Technical skills matter, but the ability to learn, unlearn, and scale impact is what defines true readiness.”
As organizations adopt skills-based models that match employees to projects rather than fixed job titles, flexibility is becoming the new currency of success. Saudi Arabia’s workforce revolution is as much cultural as it is technological, proving that progress moves fastest when inclusion and innovation advance together.
Holmes sees this as the Kingdom’s defining opportunity. “Saudi Arabia can lead global workforce transformation by showing how technology and people thrive together,” he said.
Tawfiq applies the same principle to finance. “Financial confidence grows from dialogue,” she said. “The more women talk about money, valuations, and investment, the more they’ll see themselves as decision-makers shaping the economy.”
Together, their visions outline a future where leaders are inclusive, data-literate, and AI-confident—a model that may soon define the global standard for workforce transformation under Vision 2030.
