Bahrain's GFH launches British property fund

MANAMA - Bahrain-based Islamic investment bank Gulf Finance House GFHB.BH said on Wednesday it was launching a fund for investment in British commercial property, which offers bargain prices.

Britain has been a popular destination for Gulf investment funds but a property boom in recent years has limited the profitability of real estate investing, the bank said.

The current downturn in property prices was a rare opportunity to buy.

"The prices of many good quality buildings have fallen by 25 percent from their peak and this presents astute investors with the opportunity to lock into compelling income yields," the bank said in a statement.

The bank gave no details of expected fund size or returns. The Gulf Atlantic Real Estate II fund is Gulf Finance House's second British property fund.

The bank, which has predicted a general recovery in Britain's property prices was probably six months away, operates in accordance with Islamic law, which bans interest and investments in certain business sectors, such as alcohol.

watch an interview with Steve Sedgwick on CNBC Europe, Gulf Finance House Chief Executive Esam Janahi discusses:

The listing of GFH’s Global Depository Receipt on the London market
The rapid growth of the Middle-East investment market
Sharia-compliant investment
distortion of the FOREX markets
GFH’s investment focus

Established on 16 October 1999 in the Kingdom of Bahrain as an Islamic investment bank, Gulf Finance House (GFH) is at the cutting edge of the rapidly expanding international Islamic banking industry. The Bank’s commitment is to the Islamic Shari’a philosophy of wealth management and this shapes the structure and direction of its investment products.