- The agreements included deals with Banque Saudi Fransi and Saudi British Bank (SABB)
- The company aims to inject liquidity into the Saudi housing finance market by buying out mortgages
LONDON: The Saudi Real Estate Refinance Co. (SRC) said on Saturday it had agreed to buy SR750 million ($200 million) worth of mortgages from local banks and mortgage financing companies.
The agreements, signed during last week鈥檚 Financial Sector Conference in Riyadh, included deals with Banque Saudi Fransi and Saudi British Bank (SABB), SRC said in statements.
The company, a subsidiary of 抖阴短视频鈥檚 Public Investment Fund (PIF), aims to inject liquidity into the Saudi housing finance market by buying out mortgages.
鈥淭his announcement validates SRC鈥檚 purpose within a vibrant housing market, but for it to reach full potential we must ensure that there is improved supply of new homes whilst also making these homes affordable and accessible to more Saudi citizens,鈥� SRC鈥檚 CEO Fabrice Susini said of the Banque Saudi Fransi deal.
鈥淭his agreement is a visible demonstration of how SRC makes further liquidity being available for the Saudi housing market which will ultimately make every Saudi citizen鈥檚 dream of owning a home a reality. That said, the agreement will further increase Banque Saudi Fransi鈥檚 ability to offer more (accessible) home buying solutions.鈥�
David Dew, managing director of SABB, said: 鈥淭his agreement will play a role in the development of the housing sector and the provision of sustainable solutions that will enable home ownership with ease. Housing finance is a central objective of Vision 2030, and with this initiative, SABB will be playing a central role on the development of the sector.鈥�
The announcement comes shortly after SRC successfully completed sukuk, or Islamic bond, issuances of SR750 million, making it the first non-sovereign issuer in 抖阴短视频 in 2019.
SRC, which was formed in 2017, aims to refinance 20 percent of 抖阴短视频鈥檚 mortgage market, which is forecast to grow to SR500 billion by 2020 and SR800 billion within the next decade.
Susini told Reuters last week that the company aims to issue up to $1.07 billion of long-term sukuk this year, as it prepares to purchase more home loan portfolios.