Tebyan Asset Management (Tebyan) launched its debut Tebyan CHIME Opportunities Fund (Fund). This is the first of its kind Shari'ah-compliant product to present investors a gateway to the emerging economic axis of the Arab-Indo-China regions.
It seems that Citigroup Europe is interested in entering into the sukuk market in Turkey. The statement came from Alberto Verme, the group’s Middle East and Africa (EMEA) board director.
Interest-bearing bonds are not permissible in Islam...
It appears that HSBC Saudi Arabia led a very successful SR15 billion ($4 billion) 10-year Sukuk issuance for the General Authority of Civil Aviation (GACA). The funds from the Sukuk launch will be used for the construction of the new King Abdul...
Abu Dhabi government-owned Al Hilal Bank has validated the appointment of three banks to administer its debut $500 million Islamic bond issue, which will be launched later this year.
Mohamed Berro, chief executive, noted that the banks ch...
Dubai Financial Services Authority highlighted the advantages of listing conventional bonds and Sukuk on the region's international exchange, at a forum attended by leading investment banks and law firms.
After the transfer of NASDAQ Dub...
Investment risk will still be the major rating constraint for Middle East insurers in the next 12 to 18 months. The statement came from Moody's Investor Services.
Moody's highlightes that the key driver behind this constraint on insurers...
The Pakistan Economy Watch (PEW) noted SECP’s move to push Sharia compliant risk coverage in Pakistan is to benefit millions. The move could triple insurance density and penetration in which Pakistan ranks lowest in the region.
Takaful,...
A major GCC workshop on consumer protection has authorized Saudi Arabia’s proposal to set up Supreme Council for Consumer Protection in the GCC states. According to Dr. Nasser Al-Tuwaim, chairman of the Saudi Consumer Protection Association (C...
TuranBank, in cooperation with the Islamic Corporation for Private Sector (ICD, Islamic Development Bank Group) since 2008, has begun using "Islamic financing" instrument Ijara.
According to the agreement made with ICD, this fin...
Al Rifai International Holding closed a strategic deal with Doha based Qatar First Investment Bank (QFIB). Arranger and financial advisor on this deal was ProFinance International.
The agreement states that the Qatari bank acquired a 15%...
The Islamic Financial Services Board (IFSB) has launched Exposure Drafts (EDs) on liquidity risk management and stress testing for a three-month public consultation period lasting until the end of 2011. The suggested document on liquidity risk...
When the Occupy Wall Street (OWS) movement in lower Manhattan’s Zuccotti Park gathered thousands of dollars in surplus donations, its decision-makers agreed upon a deliberate strategy of placing those sums with the customer owned Peoples Feder...
Dr Asutay critically analyzed the points of departure of the modern Islamic finance industry from the value system and aspirations of the Islamic moral economy. He also talked about the sources of and underlying reasons for this observed devia...
The Islamic Financial Services Board (IFSB) is at the moment in the process of revising its Capital Adequacy Standard for institutions offering Islamic financial services (IIFS), which was launched in 2005.
Mr. Jaseem Ahmed, Secretary-Ge...
Although Central Bank of Qatar (CBQ) set the deadline requiring the country's conventional banks which have opened Islamic banking windows to close them down to be Dec. 31, 2011, it has passed almost without being noticed.
Some Islamic b...
Ireland has conducted its first Malaysian-managed fund platform. The Central Bank of Ireland has approved the establishment of CIMB-Principal Islamic Asset Management (Ireland) Public Limited: a joint venture between Kuala Lumpur headquartered...
The Shari'ah Board of the Accounting and Auditing Organization for Islamic Financial Institutions (AAOIFI), in view of the increased use of Sukuk worldwide, the public interest in them, and the observations and questions raised about them, ana...
It seems that Egypt is laying the groundwork for a debut sovereign Islamic bond. The statement came from a person familiar with the matter.
The person added that the government is studying a new legal structure that will allow them to la...
Mazen Dajani, chief executive of Jordan's CTI Group, states that Arab Spring pushed his company, one of the world's largest shippers of cement, into the red.
The company is calculating only about 12 to 14 percent of its business will come...
Russia's Finance Ministry is acting on legal acts to sign an unusual investment agreement with the United Arab Emirates. Mutual investments will avoid taxation, whereas the Arabs will not have their profit taxed.
The agreement between th...
Experts stated that Islamic financial institutions (IFIs) should develop more products for them to handle better risks, in light of the recent financial crisis that has affected public image and trust in the global banking sector.
The sec...
One of the most controversed issues in Islamic finance is around the initial capital of Islamic banks and takaful companies, especially when initiated by a conventional parent company.
Some people doubt the purity of the capital in Islam...
The 3rd annual thematic workshop coordinated by the Institute of Islamic Banking and Insurance (IIBI) and the International Shari’ah Research Academy for Islamic Finance (ISRA) occured on 12 December 2011. The workshop was sponsored by SNR Dent...
The Moroccan Bank 'Chaabi' intends to launch a Sharia compliant account in June 2012 in Brussels, Belgium, the capital of the European Union according to newspaper 'La Libre'. The project is under review and the regulatory authoritz FSMA will b...
Prince Talal, chief of the Arab Gulf Program for Development (AGFUND), stated there was a possibility to design a credit delivery system to present banking services aiming the poor segment of Saudi society with a mission to uplift them. He adde...
It seems that Brunei Darussalam possesses a conducive environment for a strong Islamic finance sector and has the potential to be an Islamic finance hub for the global market if it looks outwards.
Sheikh Faizal Manjoo states that it woul...
There is currently a tremendous opportunity for Kuwait to profile itself as a hub for Islamic finance and Islamic banking, states Belgian academic and economist Professor Laurent Marliere.
He addes that Islamic finance itself is being ch...
Emirates Islamic Bank (EIB) has successfully ended the issuance of $500 million sukuk certificates, maturing in 2017 off their $1,000 million Trust Certificate Issuance Programme. The programme is guaranteed by Emirates NBD rated A3 by Moody's...
AirAsia X Sdn Bhd will put off a US$200 million Islamic bond issue planned for March by at least 12 months after the airline abandoned routes from Kuala Lumpur to London, Paris, Mumbai and New Delhi.
AirAsia X announced Jan. 12 that it wa...
There is a need to help Middle Eastern investors understand Asian sukuk, because if investors from the Middle East become familiar with Asian sukuk, it can be a driving force for more of its issuance in Asia. The statement came from Rafe Hanee...
Taking advantage of the situation emerging out of the economic crisis in Eurozone and countries like United States, India should adopt the Islamic Finance System to pump-in investments from the Middle East. This interest-free and more inclusiv...
A.M. Best Co. has released its criteria report, "Rating Takaful (Shari'a Compliant) Insurance Companies." The report can be accessed at http://www.ambest.com/ratings/methodology.asp.
Dow Jones Indexes announced that Tebyan Asset Management has licensed the Dow Jones Islamic Market (DJIM) CHIME Index to benchmark its new fund, the Tebyan CHIME Opportunities Fund.
The DJIM CHIME Index is created to measure the performa...
HSBC Amanah anticipates global sukuk issuance to grow to US$44 billion in 2012 from US$26.5 billion last year. Malaysia was forseen to account for 60% of the total while the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region 32%. It also stated that g...
UAE energy group Dana Gas appointed an international firm to advise on its $920 million convertible sukuk maturing in October, adding it won't stop to meet its obligations.
Dana Gas shares were up 5.9 per cent at 0945 GMT, while the suku...
The issue of Islamic finance has taken centre stage in Morocco following the Justice and Development Party's (PJD) electoral triumph. The PJD has talked of promoting Islamic finance on a number of occasions.
Bank Al-Maghrib Governor Abde...
Islamic banks’ credit to the real estate sector has sprang to a staggering 71.24% at the end of November 2011, compared to the same period in 2010.
However, the credit facility to the contracting sector saw a major drop of 69.995. The sec...
Sukuk issuance in 2012 will increase by 25-30% to eradicate the USD 200 billion barrier, despite challenges that face prosperity of this industry, such as the financial struggles of some European countries and their effect on the rest of the w...
GLOBAL CALLS FOR ECONOMIC JUSTICE: THE POTENTIAL OF ISLAMIC FINANCE
Date: Wednesday 22 February 2012
Time: 6.30-8pm
Venue: Hong Kong Theatre, Clement House, London School of Economics
Speakers: Mukhtar Hussain, Professor...
Middle East and Malaysia are anticipated to deliver a major spurt in global sukuk issuance in 2012 to an estimated $44 billion, up 66 % on 2011.
Mohammed Dawood, managing director of Islamic global markets, Europe, Middle East and Africa...
Tadhamon Capital seems to have reached an agreement with UK developer Watkin Jones for joint ownership of Athena Hall.
The Athena Hall was cultivated by Watkin Jones in 2010 and is part of a new university campus benefiting from a five-y...
Dubai's Tamweel has launched a $300 million five-year sukuk.
The transaction is guaranteed by majority shareholder Dubai Islamic Bank and comes after a series of roadshows which took place before year-end. No pricing guidance was presente...
Azerbaijani leasing company Ansar Leasing plans to raise portfolio up to $22 million in 2012. The statement came from Ceyhun Naghiyev, the company’s CEO.
He added that the comapny has at this point 350 valid contracts, having the majority...
Goldman Sachs' controversial $2 billion Islamic bond programme faced a fresh challenge as it appeared that at least two scholars named as potential approvers had not even seen the prospectus.
Asim Khan, an adviser to Goldman on the issue...
Tadhamon Capital B.S.C.(c) completed successfully an acquisition of 50% ownership alongside Watkin Jones, of a prime purpose built student accommodation block. The block, Athena Hall is located in Ipswich, about 70 miles north east of London....
Abu Dhabi Islamic Bank's initiatives regarding social responsibility:
- The bank has allocated approximately 2% of its annual profits to charity and has formed a dedicated committee to study the social assistance requests from individual...
Abu Dhabi's First Gulf Bank (FGB) has chosen four banks for a five-year benchmark-sized Islamic bond: Citi, HSBC, National Bank of Abu Dhabi and Standard Chartered.
The timeframe for sukuk hasn't been decided yet.
Emirates Islamic B...
Gatehouse Bank delivered successfully a real estate realized investment in the sale of VA Oceanside Clinic for $54.5 million. The medical facility is placed near San Deigo, California, USA.
The statement was given by Fahed Boodai, Chairma...
HSBC Amanah Malaysia Bhd wants to present an innovative sukuk this year for retail investors to maintain HSBC's position as a leading sukuk house.
Rafe Haneef, chief executive officer, stated that a launch of a retail bond product is nee...
Islamic finance banking options are progressively being seen as a viable alternative to traditional banking services in Africa and are growing to found not only the African Islamic community but all those searching for an interest-free banking...