The Islamic Development Bank (IsDB) Group has reported that net approvals reached nearly $18 billion during the first nine months of 2026, highlighting a period of robust financial activity aimed at bolstering economic development across member states. Addressing a high-level ministerial audience in Istanbul, IsDB Group Chairman Muhammad Al Jasser emphasized that the true measure of institutional success lies in tangible economic outcomes rather than the volume of headline announcements. He noted that progress should be evaluated by the enterprises empowered, new markets unlocked, and sustainable jobs created through the group’s multifaceted interventions.
Al Jasser’s remarks formed the centerpiece of a broader call for coordinated regional action to expand access to trade finance. Speaking at the 42nd ministerial session of the Standing Committee for Economic and Commercial Cooperation of the Organization of Islamic Cooperation (COMCEC)—which convened under the central theme of trade financing tools for exports—the chairman urged stakeholders to align financial mechanisms with strategic economic priorities. While the IsDB release detailed the overarching financial figures, it did not provide a specific cumulative count of the enterprises and jobs generated by the 2026 allocations, though historical reports from individual group arms offer detailed insights into prior performance metrics.
Trade ministries, exporters within the Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC), and providers of Islamic trade finance continue to evaluate these institutional metrics to gauge sector growth. According to the IsDB Group’s third-quarter briefing for 2026, the International Islamic Trade Finance Corporation (ITFC), which functions as the group’s dedicated trade arm, accounted for approximately 44.7% of cumulative group net approvals through September. The IsDB release indicated that the ITFC approved about $11 billion in the first nine months of 2026 alone, which includes nearly $9 billion specifically earmarked for intra-OIC trade, denoting commercial exchanges between member countries.
While the official release did not explicitly define net approvals—noting that approvals represent commitments rather than immediate disbursements—historical data underscores the rapid scaling of these operations. For perspective, the ITFC’s May report from earlier in the year showed $9.35 billion approved and $7.53 billion disbursed in full-year 2025. Al Jasser reiterated the group’s philosophy during the Istanbul sessions, stating that the organization remains focused on practical economic transformation rather than symbolic milestones. The IsDB release has not yet specified whether or when a comprehensive count of the enterprises and jobs supported by the 2026 financial totals will be published.
The Group’s Arms Report SME and Job Counts Differently
The various specialized entities operating under the IsDB Group umbrella track and report their impact on small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) and job creation through distinct methodologies. While the ITFC focuses heavily on macro-level trade finance, other arms like the Islamic Corporation for the Development of the Private Sector (ICD) and the Islamic Corporation for the Insurance of Investment and Export Credit (ICIEC) publish detailed performance counts regarding private sector engagement.
According to the IsDB release, the ICD approved $175 million in new operations during the first nine months of 2026. However, its comprehensive May report submitted to COMCEC outlines deeper historical engagement, noting that in 2025 the ICD extended $661.9 million to more than 2,381 SMEs, successfully supporting the creation and sustainability of approximately 347,216 jobs, alongside a separate count of 23,531 newly established positions.
Similarly, the ICIEC has reported significant expansion in its development effectiveness metrics. The export credit and investment insurance agency provided insurance coverage for nearly $16 billion in business during the first nine months of 2026, a figure that includes over $6 billion dedicated to supporting intra-OIC trade and investment. This figure represents risk-mitigation coverage rather than direct lending. In its annual performance reviews, the ICIEC documented support for 5,998 SMEs and 294,106 jobs in 2025, marking a substantial increase from 3,259 SMEs and 120,664 jobs in 2024.
Meanwhile, the ITFC maintains a distinct reporting structure. Its May report listed 144 operations across 25 countries in 2025, alongside 63 trade development interventions spanning 37 member countries that directly reached 2,257 beneficiaries. These specialized trade development programs are administered separately from standard financing approvals. Because each autonomous arm utilizes its own tracking frameworks, the reported metrics often overlap and fundamentally reflect performance data from the previous operating year rather than the ongoing 2026 allocations.
ITFC’s May Report Put About 69% of 2025 Approvals in Energy
A detailed breakdown of ITFC operations highlights the critical role that energy sector financing plays in sustaining economic stability across member states. Data from the ITFC report presented to the COMCEC Follow-up Committee revealed that approximately 69% of the corporation’s full-year approvals in 2025 were directed toward the energy sector. Out of a total $9.35 billion approved that year, energy-related initiatives accounted for nearly $6.5 billion, compared to $4.30 billion out of $7.31 billion, or roughly 59%, in 2024.
The ITFC has maintained that these energy investments are vital for strengthening productive capacities, stabilizing critical trade-enabling infrastructure, and fostering overarching economic growth. By ensuring reliable energy supplies, the corporation’s trade solutions have helped member countries maintain essential imports and keep domestic industries operational. The institution delivers financing to a diverse client base, including sovereign governments, financial institutions, and both public and private sector enterprises, with a notable emphasis on SMEs.
Despite these substantial allocations, institutional reports frequently highlight persistent challenges, noting constrained liquidity and structural trade finance gaps within developing economies. Least developed member countries absorbed 32% of total approvals in 2025. While the November 2026 release did not provide a granular sector split for the latest nine-month figures, Chairman Al Jasser has consistently advocated for integrating trade finance and guarantees with broader infrastructure investments spanning transport, energy, digital networks, and strategic value chains.
Financing directed toward sectors outside of energy reached approximately $3.0 billion in 2025, representing roughly 30% of total approvals. Within that non-energy segment, ITFC private sector approvals accounted for about $1.35 billion, or approximately 14% of the yearly total, showing steady growth compared to the $1.10 billion recorded in 2024. This trajectory underscores a deliberate institutional strategy to increase financial flows directly to private enterprises and growing SMEs.
ITFC Directs Most of Its Approvals to Intra-OIC Trade
A foundational pillar of the ITFC’s operational mandate is the deliberate cultivation of economic integration among OIC member states. The IsDB Group’s latest data indicates that nearly $9 billion of the roughly $11 billion approved by the ITFC in the first nine months of 2026 was channeled directly into intra-OIC trade, accounting for approximately four-fifths of total allocations.
This emphasis on regional trade is consistent with historical patterns. In full-year 2025, ITFC reports showed that $7.8 billion out of $9.35 billion—or approximately 83%—was dedicated to trade between member countries. Notably, the preliminary $11 billion recorded over the first nine months of 2026 has already surpassed the total annual volume registered for the entirety of 2025, though institutional disclosures note that accounting methodologies between reporting periods may vary.
Vice President Yilmaz Names the SME Trade Finance Barriers
During the opening session of the COMCEC meetings, Türkiye’s Vice President Cevdet Yilmaz drew attention to the structural impediments hindering small and medium-sized enterprises from fully participating in international commerce. Addressing delegates, Yilmaz identified three primary barriers restricting SME growth: insufficient collateral requirements, high financing costs, and a general lack of accessible market information.
To overcome these hurdles, Yilmaz called for closer institutional collaboration among commercial banks, export credit agencies, development finance institutions, and various OIC bodies, while urging non-participating nations to join the existing COMCEC SME Program. Echoing these sentiments, IsDB Chairman Al Jasser stressed the urgent necessity of providing accessible trade finance solutions coupled with effective risk-sharing instruments tailored to smaller enterprises.
Yilmaz also advocated for the establishment of a streamlined regulatory framework designed to harmonize customs procedures and accelerate digital trade adoption across OIC member economies. Highlighting broader economic targets, Yilmaz noted that Islamic nations have yet to achieve the collective goal of raising intra-OIC trade to 25% of their total commercial exchange. Pointing out structural disparities, he observed that while the 57-member OIC accounts for nearly one-fifth of the global population, its economies generate only 10% to 11% of total worldwide goods trade, prompting calls for more ambitious regional targets.
Türkiye’s Trade Targets With the UAE and Egypt Sit Far Above Last Year
Bilateral economic diplomacy on the sidelines of the COMCEC session underscored significant upward adjustments in regional trade ambitions. Turkish Trade Minister Ömer Bolat engaged in discussions regarding an expanded bilateral trade target of $40 billion with the United Arab Emirates, a substantial increase compared to the approximately $19 billion recorded the previous year. Similarly, Türkiye and Egypt have established a shared target of reaching $15 billion in bilateral trade, up from the $7.9 billion registered last year.
As the COMCEC ministerial sessions progressed toward their scheduled conclusion, overarching national strategies highlighted Türkiye’s broader objective to elevate the share of Islamic countries in its total export portfolio from 27% to 30% by 2028, reflecting a concerted regional push toward deeper commercial integration and sustainable economic partnership.