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Dubai: Despite the recent global financial turmoil caused by the credit crunch, investor confidence remains guardedly positive, Noor Islamic Bank said in a statement.
The comments were made by Eric Stodet, group executive director of Noor Islamic Bank, during a panel discussion titled 'Where has all the liquidity gone' at the International Real Estate Investment and Development Conference held on the penultimate day of Cityscape Dubai 2008.
According to Stodet, the UAE has developed rapidly with tourism and financial services remaining its key focus. It is estimated that the financing requirements for these projects will be around Dh50 billion for 2009.
He said: "Raising this financing has become more challenging as loan to value ratios rise higher and equity takes a bigger piece of the puzzle. As a result of the changing nature of the credit markets, a number of projects will not meet investors' return criteria and may not attract enough financing."
Pointing out that no market can stay immune from the current crisis, Stodet commented: "There is no cheap money anymore. In the medium term, development financing will be difficult, particularly for speculative projects. Securing property financing will also be more challenging than in the past."
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