COVID-19 Measure: Read Full Magazine Here. Established in 1999, ICD is a member of Islamic Development Bank (IsDB) and supports economic development and promotes the development of the private sector in its member countries.
It also offers advice to governments and private organizations to boost the expansion, modernization of private enterprises.
The Islamic Corporation for the Development of the Private Sector (ICD) provides Islamic banking services. The Bank manages banking and non banking financial equities. ICD offers advisory, direct investment, financing, asset management, and consulting services. ICD serves its customers worldwide.
The ICD is the private sector arm of the Jeddah-based Islamic Development Bank Group (IDBG).
Ayman Amin Sejiny has been the chief executive officer of the Islamic Corporation for the Development of the Private Sector (ICD) since October 2018.
Sejiny has 24 years of experience working in corporate and investment banking in local, regional and international markets and has held senior roles in a number of financial institutions including Citibank and ABN AMRO affiliates in Saudi Arabia, Samba and Saudi Hollandi Bank respectively.
He has also served as CEO of Ibdar Bank BSC, Bank Alkhair, and Barclays Capital Saudi Arabia, chairman of Open-Silicon, Inc. and Bahrain Financing Co. Group, and as a board member of Unicorn Bahrain.
He gained a bachelor’s degree in finance from Eastern Michigan University, in the US, as well as C-level performer with vast experience in innovating financial processes and products.
Ayman’s considerable experience in banking sector, along with his strong track record of success as a CEO, made him the outstanding candidate for his current role. Ayman has demonstrated throughout his career the ability to work successfully in different environments, designing and leading strategies which resulted in impressive value creation.
Ayman Sejiny, admires ICD and therefore it is an exciting phase of his business journey. He is fond to meeting employees, leaders, customers and other stakeholders to achieve further success in the years to come.
It is important to mention that Ayman had to fight tooth and nail for every step up the ladder. A smart, strategic, and enterprising leader, he perfectly embodies the entrepreneurial spirit.
Recently, ICD announced a rapid response initiative to combat the repercussions of the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) pandemic by allocating $250 million in emergency funding, mainly in the form of medium- to long-term financing instruments to help existing and new clients in the financial, agri-food, energy and other affected sectors.
ICD will also aid the private health care industries of affected member countries to meet the surge in demand for services, equipment and medication.
ICD will also work closely with more than 100 local and regional financial institutions in its network to provide the necessary support so that they can continue to finance small- and medium-sized enterprises in the affected sectors.
Additionally, the IDBG was setting up a strategic preparedness and response facility of $730 million to mitigate the negative health and socio-economic impacts of the virus outbreak.
The facility is extending financing to both the public and private sectors with the aim of minimizing the spread and impact of COVID-19 in IDBG member countries.
Saying the above, Ayman Amin Sejiny sat down for an interview with BUSINESS LIFE in his office.
During the 50-minute conversation, he discussed his ICD strategies, plans and achievement, his approach to the 2021 and 2020 accomplishments, as well as his thoughts on Saudi Arabia, the globe and Lebanon and ICD financing issues like green Sukuks, solar projects and wind farms, SMEs, the private sector and the slowing economy due to the worst epidemics and pandemics in history (COVID-19) that swept the lives of many people.
BL: How does ICD plan to mitigate the negative health and socio-economic impacts of the Corona virus outbreak?
Ayman Amin Sejiny: From the very onset of the pandemic, ICD took immediate steps to assist its member countries. We have provided entrepreneurial support through our channels by extending lines of finance to financial institutions in our member countries to reach end-beneficiaries, primarily SMEs. We also combined lending and advisory services to clients to increase the contribution that SMEs can make to the economy, including underserved segments such as women-owned SMEs. During this challenging time, we are exploring ways to strengthen the resilience of businesses by scaling up our response to the economic and health challenges of the crisis. There is also a role for businesses that directly have a hand in combating the COVID-19 pandemic through the provision of health care or access to basic goods and services. We are closely assessing opportunities to invest in these types of businesses. ICD will be aiding the private healthcare industry of affected member countries to meet the surging need for services, equipment and medicines.
BL: Do you plan to continue to finance small- and medium-sized enterprises in the affected sectors? How?
Ayman Amin Sejiny: Efforts to draw up plans to manage and lend support to SME sustainability has always been at the core of ICD’s operations. ICD has set up a dedicated USD 250 million stimulus package to aid SMEs and private sector in affected countries in a bid to extend support, shore up demand, and protect people’s jobs and livelihood. The emergency funding is mainly in the form of medium to long-term financing instruments to alleviate the economic burden faced by existing and new clients. This is to ensure better access to finance and working capital - financial relief is paramount for SMEs, as they take steps to maintain cash flows and operations. As key drivers of growth, it is vital that SMEs secure adequate support to shield them from the downturn. This is even more important in countries where governments are fiscally constrained and face challenges in providing bailout packages that protect wages and provide subsidies for affected businesses. We also plan to further enhance capacity and capability of SMEs by providing tailored technical assistance programs that can improve their efficiency, productivity and technological capabilities to weather future shock events (equipping SMEs with tools/skills via Business Resilience Assistance for Value-Adding Enterprise (BRAVE) Program, for example).
BL: What is your response plan to combat the repercussions of the coronavirus disease (COVID-19)? How has the virus impacted ICD operations?
Ayman Amin Sejiny: As a private sector-oriented multilateral institution, we play a vital role in providing support and addressing the needs of the private sector of our member countries on a best efforts basis. We continuously conduct risk assessments and stress tests on our portfolio, taking into consideration the latest and forecasted macroeconomic indicators as well as some other qualitative factors. To date, we do not foresee any significant implications on our active portfolio in connection with the varying SME support/measures included in the stimulus packages announced by governments of our member countries. In fact, we believe they are mostly encouraging and overall, will positively stimulate the private sector. Internally, we have been focusing on several fintech initiatives that will help us better serve our member countries and revolutionize the way we do business (example: Bridge Platform). From the beginning of the pandemic, we successfully pivoted to working remotely with business as usual, and this has helped us navigate through the pandemic with minimal disruption to our business operations.
BL: What are your comments on the role of the private sector during the challenging period that all the world is experiencing?
Ayman Amin Sejiny: The COVID-19 pandemic has highlighted the fragility of many businesses and markets across the globe. In a very short time, the context in which we operate has changed drastically. What should be the main aim now is to find solutions that build the resilience of SMEs by addressing short and medium-term impacts of COVID-19. To begin with, the private sector can play a proactive role to close key gaps in the COVID-19 response by minimizing short-term risks to employees and long-term costs to businesses and the economy. In addition, during these trying times, while some businesses are enhancing the work of public bodies, what the private sector can also do is to contribute to the production and distribution of essential supplies. Several reports have outlined how the private sector, in “war-time effort”, has shouldered this shared burden by shifting into overdrive and mobilizing cooperation and business support through donations and dedicated funds, repurposing their production and R&D capabilities to join the fight against COVID-19 and more. Through this, or by increasing ESG investments in the future for example, the private sector can band together and step in to cover the existing gaps in the current response.
BL: How did your country tackle this critical phase in history during this vicious epidemic outbreak?
Ayman Amin Sejiny: As with many other countries, our host country, Saudi Arabia, implemented precautionary measures to mitigate the spread of the virus, introducing a slew of economic packages, regulatory guidelines and qualitative measures which include lending support to banking and SME sectors in deferred loan payments and increased lending, private sector support, as well as other supervisory measures and preventive policies backed by the Saudi Arabian Monetary Authority (SAMA) to support businesses and individuals. Saudi Arabia’s digital capabilities have also provided a solid foundation for key aspects of the country’s COVID-19 emergency response. For example, the national portal, gov.sa, maintained reliable access to over 900 e-government services despite a surge in traffic when the curfew was applied nationally. On the education front, with the complete closure of educational institutions during the course of the COVID-19 lockdown, access to remote learning has been made possible with several online educational platforms, such as iEn National Education Portal and Future Gate.
BL: Humans are afraid of each other and the virus also deleted many social activities and behaviors and led to substantial loss in human lives in many countries. It also impacted the educational sector and the newborns in relation to their contact with their mothers. Do you think that all the harm caused by this virus will find its remedy one day?
Ayman Amin Sejiny: From the health perspective, there are currently dozens of COVID-19 vaccines in development yielding promising results. Recent reports suggest that while challenges may still arise-- such as production bottlenecks and public resistance and skepticism-- medical experts and researchers are optimistic that a well-designed, safe and effective vaccine will be available in the near future. I believe that with consistent global efforts and coordination, we can educate the public and raise awareness, overcome this virus and begin the recovery process. Indeed, the crisis has been an eye opener and has changed our understanding and way of working and living; while, illustrating interrelations amongst human well-being, the economy, as well as the environment. On the business front, the new normal will force many businesses to re-evaluate and re-invent themselves to focus on sustainability, flexibility and resilience. It is indeed a long road to recovery, but by reflecting on the past year and focusing on interventions to maximize their positive impact on society, I am confident we will rise and overcome the crisis.
BL: What are the prospects of Green Sukuk? What about solar projects and wind farms in Saudi Arabia?
Ayman Amin Sejiny: To achieve sustainable development, there is a requirement for the re-alignment of the financial system as well as impactful investments which focus on serving the needs of inclusive, environmentally sustainable, economic development. To this end, utilizing profit-seeking investments to generate social and environmental good is definitely a growing trend and way forward. Green Sukuk has recently emerged as a unique example of a Shari’ah-compliant impact investing instrument with strong growth prospects to fund environment-friendly endeavours. Southeast Asia is taking the lead in financing renewable energy projects via Green Sukuk and pioneering transactions have been observed in Malaysia and Indonesia with great success. As we transition to focus on investing in renewable energy projects in Saudi Arabia, Sukuk can play a significant role regarding this front. While I would like to remain optimistic, there are several issues which need to be addressed for a substantial uptake in Sukuk issuances. Generally, Sukuk are still complex capital market instruments and the process of issuing them is not yet equivalent to that for issuing bonds. This tends to push issuers to seek other avenues when they need to raise financing quickly. Therefore, the challenge of standardization of Sukuk in its documentation and structures, as well as standardization in Shariah principles, high transaction costs etc. are barriers to the development of the Sukuk market.
BL: How do you describe the year 2020? What are the major achievements that ICD accomplished in 2020?
Ayman Amin Sejiny: 2020 has been an unprecedented year for ICD. In 2019, we oversaw a strategic transformation where refined objectives for the next 10 years were approved and this year was the kick-start year of the plan. During 2020, we also achieved significant progress towards our strategic targets. In the area of development effectiveness, ICD achieved most of its targets and allocated more than half of its operations to high impact sectors (including financial and infrastructure sectors) and in low and lower-middle income countries. As far as financial results are concerned, ICD achieved 6% increase in revenues to date compared to same period in 2019 and realized around 15% savings in its costs compared to the same period last year. In addition, we have received strong support from our shareholders in our 2nd general capital increase (GCI) and thus far, the total paid-up capital in 2nd GCI surpassed USD 600 Million. We have also recently completed ICD’s largest Sukuk issuance at an amount of USD 600Million which was oversubscribed by 37 international and regional investors. This is a testament to our shareholders, as well as investors in relation to ICD’s credit story and new strategy which the new management has been working diligently to formulate and implement over the past two years.
BL: What are your plans and targets for the year 2021 and beyond?
Ayman Amin Sejiny: Through financing and a wide range of technical support and expertise, ICD will continue to deliver on its mandate by supporting and prioritizing SMEs that have been affected by the pandemic and the fast-evolving macroeconomic environment. Accordingly, we have developed an updated 3-year business plan for the period of 2021-2023 which has been approved by ICD’s Board of Directors. As per our business plan, we are envisioning to grow our core portfolio by approximately 35% per year during the next three years. As part of our new strategy, we will complement our financing activities with fee-based businesses through our dedicated Sukuk program, asset management activities and syndication business. During 2021, we will mainly focus on high impact sectors such as financial, infrastructure and agribusiness. By focusing on our areas of strength, ICD will mobilize efforts to cooperate with policymakers and other development finance institutions (DFIs) on a regional and global scale to help sustain economies and support critical industries in this time of need. Moving forward, we are at the stage where it is important to think about what more resilient economies should look like in the future and ways we can support them as a private sector multilateral institution. The investment community has an opportunity to focus on investing toward growth and businesses that are sustainable with high levels of environmental, social and governance (ESG) standards, and that are aligned with the SDGs. If anything, the COVID-19 pandemic has highlighted that humanity will continue to face various global challenges, and investors are realizing that the corporate sector can and must participate in meeting them. In this regard, I believe ICD will step up efforts to increase awareness on this front and will work together with current and future clients to ensure the type of support we give will lead to gains in sustainable and long-term growth and well-being.
