Excerpt:
Britain has become the first western country to issue an Islamic bond, attracting orders of more than £2bn from global investors for its sale of sharia-compliant debt.
London's maiden "sukuk" will pay out profits based on the rental income from three government-owned properties in lieu of interest, which is forbidden under Islamic religious law.
The £200m sale, which comes days before the start of Ramadan, was heavily oversubscribed by investors in the UK, Middle East and Asia, attracting orders of £2.3bn – 10 times higher than the amount sold.