Dubai – Mubasher: Emirates NBD has issued three-year fixed-rate Digitally Native Notes (DNNs) at AED 1 billion, marking the first-ever AED-denominated digital bond and the largest public digital bond issued in the MENA region.
Listed on Nasdaq Dubai, the offering highlights the bank’s major position in digital assets, according to a press release.
The bond was issued via a public offering under Emirates NBD’s Euro Medium Term Note (EMTN) Programme, leveraging distributed ledger technology (DLT) on Euroclear’s Digital Financial Market Infrastructure (D-FMI) platform to digitise the bond lifecycle.
Ahmed Al Qassim, Group Head of Wholesale Banking, Emirates NBD, said: “The transaction will enhance operational efficiency, speed up settlement cycles and strengthen transparency and security for investors, while building a more resilient digital capital markets ecosystem in the UAE and the region.”
Hamed Ali, CEO of Nasdaq Dubai, commented: “The admission of an AED-denominated digitally native bond to trading on Nasdaq Dubai reflects the growing maturity of digital debt markets. It demonstrates that new issuance models can operate confidently within a regulated, internationally aligned exchange environment, while maintaining transparency, liquidity, and investor confidence.”
The launch comes amid strong growth in the region’s debt capital markets, driven by heightened investor demand, which has encouraged government entities and corporations to issue new debt.
Regarding its financial position, the ADX-listed lender generated net income of AED 36.70 billion in the first nine months (9M) of 2025.
