The International Islamic Liquidity Management Corporation ( IILM ), the world’s leading issuer of Shariah-compliant short-term liquidity management instruments, announced on October 16 the successful upsizing of its sukuk programme from US$6 billion to US$8.5 billion.

This milestone marks another major achievement in the IILM’s growth journey and reinforces its role as the primary provider of short-term Islamic high-quality liquid assets that support the cross-border liquidity needs of Islamic financial institutions worldwide. 

IILM chief executive officer Mohamad Safri Shahul Hamid says the expansion of the sukuk programme reflects IILM’s continued growth trajectory and commitment to providing a robust platform for liquidity management in the Islamic financial system.   

He adds: “This latest upsizing of our sukuk programme, following last year’s increase from US$4 billion to US$6 billion, reflects the IILM’s growth momentum and its pivotal role in advancing global Islamic liquidity management. By deepening and diversifying our asset base, we are better positioned to support the evolving needs of Islamic financial institutions worldwide, as well as strengthen the resilience of the Islamic financial ecosystem.”

Strong demand 

The upsize comes amid strong and sustained demand for the IILM’s highly rated short-term sukuk, which reached a record US$5.7 billion outstanding in May 2025, the highest since the sukuk programme’s inception in 2013. Over the past two years, the IILM has also strengthened its market reach through the onboarding of five new primary dealers, bringing its total number to 15 – thus further broadening its distribution network and market depth. The expansion demonstrates a timely response to the growing demand from financial institutions and investors seeking high-quality Shariah-compliant instruments.

In 2025 alone, IILM has so far onboarded three new primary dealers – AlRayan Bank of Qatar, Kuwait International Bank and Golden Global Investment Bank of  Türkiye – reinforcing the IILM’s strong and growing footprint across key Islamic finance jurisdictions.

The inclusion of AlRayan, one of Qatar’s largest and most stable Islamic banks, not only enhances the GCC ( Gulf Cooperation Council ) representation, but also supports the IILM’s broader ambition to extend its reach to the other key Islamic finance markets, including Europe, through AlRayan’s wider group presence.

Golden Global is Türkiye’s first Shariah-compliant investment bank established in 2019. Its inclusion as a primary dealer will solidify the bank’s presence in the global Islamic financial markets and, at the same time, unlock new opportunities for Turkish investors and institutions, enabling them to access high quality Islamic cross-border liquidity solutions.

The rest of the IILM’s primary dealer network includes Abu Dhabi Islamic Bank, Al Baraka Turk, Affin Islamic Bank, Boubyan Bank, CIMB Islamic Bank, Dukhan Bank, First Abu Dhabi Bank, Kuwait Finance House, Maybank Islamic, Meethaq Islamic Banking from Bank Muscat, Qatar Islamic Bank, and Standard Chartered.

Cross-border liquidity  

Since its inaugural issuance in 2013, the IILM has issued over US$130 billion across more than 300 short-term sukuk series, with tenors ranging from one month to 12 months. The IILM’s instruments are rated A-1 by S&P Global Ratings and F1 by Fitch Ratings.

The IILM was established on October 25 2010 by central banks, monetary authorities and multilateral organizations to develop and issue short-term Shariah-compliant financial instruments to facilitate effective cross-border liquidity management for institutions that offer Islamic financial services.

The current members of the IILM governing board are the central banks and monetary agencies of Indonesia, Kuwait, Malaysia, Mauritius, Nigeria, Qatar, Türkiye, the United Arab Emirates, as well as the multilateral Islamic Corporation for the Development of the Private Sector.