From Worldbulletin.net: Turkey’s state railway company TCDD signed on Monday a contract with South Korean railway systems provider Hyundai Rotem to buy 80 electric locomotives and a simulator for $312.7 million.
TCDD Director-General Suleyman Karaman told a signing ceremony that $220 million of the financing for the project would be provided by the Islamic Development Bank (IDB)……………………………………….Full Article: Source

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From Ameinfo.com: Al Khaliji and IBQ have announced progress in the proposed merger discussions that began earlier this year. The proposed merger is now entering final stages of negotiations and due diligence, including formal discussions with key regulators.
The merger remains subject to approval from the relevant government and regulatory authorities in Qatar, as well as the Board and shareholders of both banks……………………………………….Full Article: Source

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From Gfsnews.com: The Islamic Financial Services Board has released a standard on solvency requirements for Islamic insurance undertakings to bring it into line with global insurance standards.
There are key differences between Takāful (Islamic insurance) and conventional insurance and the IFSB and the International Association of Insurance Supervisors have been working together to resolve this……………………………………….Full Article: Source

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From Reactionsnet.com: Takaful – the Islamic alternative to conventional insurance – represents a radical new insurance business model that is firing a potentially very big emerging market in the Middle East. But although it is a genuine alternative to the familiar product, takaful companies face many of the same challenges besetting their western counterparts.
Heightened competition is one of the biggest challenges facing insurance companies around the world, for example – and takaful firms operate in the same market conditions as conventional insurance companies, says Peter Hodgins, Dubai-based partner with the law firm Clyde & Co……………………………………….Full Article: Source

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From Opalesque: The concept of deposit insurance in the Islamic finance industry is still relatively new as practitioners are struggling to comprehend whether it conforms to Sharia. Very few countries with Islamic economies have an Islamic deposit insurance system in place as it is a complicated balance between maintaining profit-loss sharing Sharia principles and protecting bank customers (Baeshen, 2010).
Islamic deposit insurance is a Sharia-compliant system that provides protection to depositors against the potential loss of an Islamic bank’s failure (Arshad, 2009)……………………………………….Full Article: Source

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From Newsabahtimes.com.my: Malaysia is poised to become one of the biggest Islamic financial hubs globally, thanks largely to the rising number of foreign players plus greater demand for Islamic financing under the country’s ambitious Economic Transformation Plan (ETP).
“This marks tremendous success in the Government’s foresight and its pro-active involvement towards the progress of Islamic financing in the domestic landscape,” said Chief Executive Officer of Maybank Islamic Bhd, Ibrahim Hassan……………………………………….Full Article: Source

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From Arabnews.com: Having donated over $1 billion to the Islamic Development Bank’s Poverty Reduction Fund, Saudi Arabia was at the top of a 2008 list of countries that offered the highest amount of voluntary and unconditional assistance for relief and humanitarian operations.
This was disclosed at the end of the three-day First World Conference on Saudi Arabia’s Efforts to Solve Muslim Issues that ended on Tuesday in Madinah. The event, which was attended by over 100 researchers from 35 countries, was jointly organized by the Islamic University in Madinah and the King Foundation for Research and Archives in Riyadh……………………………………….Full Article: Source

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From Reuters: Kuwait-based Gulf Investment Corporation (GIC) will set up a 3.5 billion ringgit ($1.1 billion) Islamic fund-raising programme in Malaysia, a source said on Monday.
The programme will be established in January, after the corporation sold 1 billion ringgit of bonds in the Southeast Asian country in 2008, said the source who asked not to be identified as the plan had not been announced……………………………………….Full Article: Source

From Bloomberg: Persian Gulf borrowers are selling ringgit-denominated Islamic bonds at a record pace in Malaysia to raise funds for expansion and take advantage of demand in the world’s biggest market for shariah-compliant bonds.
Issuance surged to 1 billion ringgit ($318 million) this year, the most since 2008 when Gulf companies started tapping the Malaysian market, data compiled by Bloomberg show……………………………………….Full Article: Source

From Bloomberg: Saudi Arabia may overtake Malaysia as the largest issuer of Islamic bonds for the first time in 2011 as the kingdom’s 1.44 trillion-riyal ($384 billion) stimulus plan boosts spending.
Saudi Electricity Co., the Arab world’s largest utility by market value, will finance more than 30 billion riyals ($8 billion) of projects, Chief Executive Officer Ali Al-Barrak said in a Dec. 14 interview……………………………………….Full Article: Source

From Businessweek.com: Indonesia plans to name three banks to help it sell about $650 million of Islamic bonds, Dahlan Siamat, director for Islamic financing at the finance ministry, said in a telephone interview in Jakarta. The government sold its first international Islamic dollar bonds in April 2009.
Al Baraka Bank Egypt Esc, a unit of Bahrain-based Albaraka Banking Group, may sell dollar-denominated Islamic bonds in the second half of 2011, the bank’s chairman said Sept. 29. The bank hasn’t decided on the size of the bond, he said……………………………………….Full Article: Source

From Reuters: Malaysian Islamic insurer Great Eastern Takaful will expand to Indonesia and Brunei to tap the Muslim market for sharia-compliant products, its chief executive officer said on Monday.
The company, which is owned by a subsidiary of Singapore’s Great Eastern Holdings Limited and Malaysia’s armed forces cooperative, also has Singapore and China on its radar for expansion……………………………………….Full Article: Source

From Bernama: Allianz Malaysia Bhd (AMB) has received approval from Bank Negara Malaysia (BNM) to commence negotiation with MNRB Holdings Bhd (MNRB) on the proposed acquisition of equity interest in Takaful Ikhlas Sdn Bhd.
In a filing to Bursa Malaysia Monday, AMB said the approval was received via BNM’s letter dated Dec 17……………………………………….Full Article: Source

From Cpifinancial.net: CEO of Capinnova Investment Bank, Jamal Hijres, strongly believes that standardisation of the ‘Islamic banking policies, procedures and regulatory framework’ on a global level is important to propel the growth of Islamic banking across geographies.
“An important effort towards achieving international consistency was the creation of two multilateral institutions: the Accounting and Auditing Organization for Islamic Financial Institutions (AAOIFI),………………………………………Full Article: Source

From Freemalaysiatoday.com: Islamic banking is Western banking in disguise and made to appear halal. All calculations on returns on investment to ensure profitability are based on ‘haram’ interest rates.
But if it helps to fool oneself to alleviate one’s conscience, why not? It is like a Westerner placing a dish cloth and rubber tyre on his head to make himself an Arab……………………………………….Full Article: Source

From Arabianbusiness.com: Emirates NBD, Dubai’s largest bank by market value, on Monday said it plans to offer personal loans that will be underwritten by customers’ end-of-contract employment gratuity.
Customers will be able to borrow up to 90 percent of their gratuity, with a minimum loan amount of AED10,000 ($2,722), on the premise that their severance pay is used as collateral, the bank said……………………………………….Full Article: Source

PT Bank Maybank Indocorp, or BMI, has officially renamed as Maybank Syariah Indonesia, or MSI, having converted to a full fledged Islamic bank in Indonesia in October 2010. BMI has received approval from the central bank of Indonesia on 23 September 2010 to convert its operations into an Islamic bank.
It has in the past, been operating mainly in wholesale banking offering corporate banking, trade finance and treasury services to a wide range of corporate client. In addition the bank offered niche retail banking services through its office in Jakarta……………………………………….Full Press Release: Source

From Arabnews.com: After passing regulatory muster with the Saudi Arabian Capital Market Authority (CMA), Alinma Investment has announced the launch of official public operations with licenses to engage in all investment related activities including dealing, managing, arranging, advisory and custody services.
Speaking at the launch, Abdul-mohsen Al-Fares, chairman of the board of directors of Alinma Investment, said that time was right for launching the business and the price-to-earnings ratios of local and international companies were suitable for investment……………………………………….Full Article: Source

From Gulf-daily-news.com: Sharia-compliant philanthropy is on the rise with the Waqf sector (Islamic endowment) estimated at around $105 billion globally, according to various researches conducted by Ernst & Young.
“The Sharia-compliant endowment sector provides a unique impetus for the growth of Islamic finance including the nascent asset management industry,” said Ernst & Young director and head of Islamic financial services Ashar Nazim……………………………………….Full Article: Source

From Arabnews.com: The Islamic fund management industry, long considered to be the Cinderella asset class of the Islamic finance sector, is set to gain momentum especially in Southeast Asia and Saudi Arabia. The Kingdom and Malaysia are the two largest markets by far for Islamic investment funds, both in terms of net asset value (NAV) and number of funds.
Indeed, Zarinah Anwar, chairman of the Securities Commission Malaysia (SC), the securities and fund regulator, confirmed that Malaysia’s Islamic fund management industry is the fastest growing segment of Malaysia’s Islamic capital market (ICM) with an annual compounded growth of more than 25 percent over the last 5 years……………………………………….Full Article: Source

From Bloomberg: Islamic loans in the Middle East will rebound in 2011 from a five-year low, said HSBC Holdings Plc, this year’s biggest lender, as accelerating economic growth and Qatar’s building for the soccer World Cup boosts spending.
Syndicated loans dropped 18 percent this year to $6.5 billion, according to data compiled by Bloomberg. Loans peaked at $24 billion in 2007, before the worst financial crisis since the Great Depression……………………………………….Full Article: Source

From Gulf-daily-news.com: Standardisation of the Islamic banking policies, procedures and regulatory framework on a global level is important to propel the growth of the industry. That is the view of BBK investment banking arm Capinnova Investment Bank chief executive officer Jamal Hijres.
“An important effort towards achieving international consistency was the creation of two multilateral institutions, the Accounting and Auditing Organisation for Islamic Financial Institutions and the Islamic Financial Services Board……………………………………….Full Article: Source

Shari’a compliant philanthropy, or planned giving, is on the rise with the Waqf sector (Islamic endowment) estimated at around $105bn globally, according to various research conducted recently by Ernst & Young on the sector.
Ashar Nazim, Director and Head of Islamic Financial Services at Ernst & Young, says, “The Shari’a compliant endowment sector provides a unique impetus for the growth of Islamic finance including the nascent asset management industry. While Waqf has always been an integral part of Islamic countries’ economic system, it is only now that a more formal structure is evolving for professional investment management of this pool of money, with an emphasis on making a sustainable impact. More investment firms are eyeing this opportunity, adding a new dimension to the Islamic asset management industry.”………………………………………Full Press Release: Source

From Tradearabia.com: Shari’a compliant philanthropy, or planned giving, is on the rise with the Waqf sector (Islamic endowment) estimated at around $105 billion globally, according to research conducted recently by Ernst & Young on the sector.
Ashar Nazim, director and head of Islamic Financial Services at Ernst & Young, says: “The Shari’a compliant endowment sector provides a unique impetus for the growth of Islamic finance including the nascent asset management industry……………………………………….Full Article: Source

From Arabnews.com: The International Islamic Liquidity Management Corporation (IILM), which was launched in Kuala Lumpur in October, took a step closer to becoming a reality when its governing board last week appointed Mahmoud AbuShamma as its inaugural chief executive officer (CEO), for a three-year tenure effective Feb. 1, 2011.
AbuShamma’s tenure is also subject to the adoption by the Malaysian Parliament, the Dewan Rakyat, of a Special Enabling Act which would accord the IILM a special diplomatic status and its attendant privileges……………………………………….Full Article: Source

From Arabnews.com: The appointment last week by the council of governors of the Islamic Financial Services Board (IFSB) of Jaseem Ahmed as its new secretary-general comes at a time when the prudential and supervisory standard setting organization of the global Islamic finance industry is poised to enter its next stage of development since it was first established in 2002.
Ahmed succeeds Professor Rifaat Abdel Karim, the inaugural secretary-general who was responsible for establishing the IFSB operationally in 2003 and steering it to its present pre-eminence. Ahmed’s appointment was confirmed at the 17th meeting of the council of governors that was held in Jeddah……………………………………….Full Article: Source

CEO of Capinnova Investment Bank, Mr. Jamal Hijres, strongly believes that standardisation of the ‘Islamic banking policies, procedures and regulatory framework’ on a global level is important to propel the growth of Islamic Banking across geographies. Capinnova Investment Bank is the Shari’a compliant investment banking arm of BBK.
“An important effort towards achieving international consistency was the creation of two multilateral institutions: the Accounting and Auditing Organization for Islamic Financial Institutions (AAOIFI), which issues internationally, recognized Shari’a standards on accounting, auditing, and governance issues; and the Islamic Financial Services Board (IFSB), which issues standards for the effective supervision and regulation of Islamic financial institutions. The growth of such institutions will definitely improve and propel the industry at a faster pace,” said Mr. Hijres……………………………………….Full Press Release: Source

From Ahram.org.eg: The Islamic development bank agreed to lend Bangladesh $ 1.6 billion for the importation of oil in 2011, said senior official.
The loan was approved after long negotiations with officials in Bangladesh like the governor of the central bank of Bangladesh, said Anwar El kareem Chairman ofBangladesh Petroleum public corporation, which is the only importer and distributer in the country……………………………………….Full Article: Source

Sharjah Islamic Bank has announced the launch of the second phase of its online retail banking services - Weyy@com - as part of its strategy to enhance its online service offering. This comes in response to an increasing demand for free, user-friendly services that are available around the clock to customers both inside the UAE and abroad.
The new services are in line with the directives of the bank’s board of directors and senior management to provide the best possible services to customers, to create a safe and secure e-banking environment, and to open new communication channels with customers……………………………………….Full Press Release: Source

Dubai Shariah Asset Management (DSAM), and financial investment consultant Mondial (Dubai) L.L.C. (part of the Financial Partners Affiliation) today announced a Memorandum of Understanding where Mondial will offer the DSAM Kauthar Funds in seven countries, including the UAE, as part of a developing strategy to provide Shariah compliant products to investors.
The first two funds available to investors will be the DSAM Kauthar Gold Fund, Ltd., winner of the 2010 MENA Fund Manager Award for Outstanding Performance & Innovation and the DSAM Kauthar Energy Fund. DSAM is a joint venture between Dubai Multi Commodity Centre Authority (DMCC)and Shariah Capital……………………………………….Full Press Release: Source

From Khaleejtimes.com: Saudi Arabia, the Middle East’s largest economy, is expected to see gross domestic product growth of 3.7 per cent in 2011, on the back of higher public spending and improving business confidence, but ongoing weakness in the domestic credit markets still poses risks, senior bankers at Morgan Stanley said.
“Our 2011 economic outlook for Saudi Arabia is fairly positive. We expect GDP growth of 3.7 per cent in 2011, based on an expected expansion of 1.5 per cent in the oil sector and 4.6 per cent in the non-oil sectors,” Mohamed Jaber, Vice-President and Chief Economist at Morgan Stanley International, said at a recent roundtable discussion in Dubai……………………………………….Full Article: Source

From Cpifinancial.net: Abu Dhabi Islamic Bank (ADIB) and the Higher Colleges of Technology (HCT) signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) to create the region’s first Institute of Islamic Economics and Ethics in the presence of and under the auspices of HE Sheikh Nahayan Mabarak Al Nahayan, Minister of Higher Education and Scientific Research and Chancellor, Higher Colleges of Technology.
ADIB Institute of Islamic Economics and Ethics will provide information and raise public awareness of the importance of doing business ethically and help organisations strengthen their ethics culture. Its activities will encourage high standards of ethical behavior in business and provide guidance to employees on it. It will deliver training for corporations and SMEs and publish research and surveys about ethical practices and business conduct……………………………………….Full Article: Source

From Gulfnews.com: For Islamic finance, the credibility issue is neatly addressed when institutions like S&P, Thomson Reuters, Clifford Chance, and PWC enter the space, as these global brands will not risk tarnishing their brands without due diligence on a sizeable opportunity.
And their decades of experience is the need of the hour for this niche market to become ‘conventionally efficient and competitive.’………………………………………Full Article: Source

From Bernama: Malaysia is poised to become one of the biggest Islamic financial hubs globally, thanks largely to the rising number of foreign players plus greater demand for Islamic financing under the country’s ambitious Economic Transformation Plan (ETP).
“This marks tremendous success in the Government’s foresight and its pro-active involvement towards the progress of Islamic financing in the domestic landscape,” said Chief Executive Officer of Maybank Islamic Bhd, Ibrahim Hassan……………………………………….Full Article: Source

From Bernama: Global trade should have reverted to the use of gold dinar following the decline in the value of the US dollar, said former prime minister, Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad. He said since the price of gold was difficult to fall, it was suitable for use worldwide compared with the US dollar now.
“At one time, US$35 was equal to one ounce of gold. But today, it is worth US$1,400, meaning the US dollar has already depreciated……………………………………….Full Article: Source

From Opalesque: Clearly, a new Islamic Dinar weighted to equal 4.3 grams of gold and an Islamic Dirham weighted at 3 grams of silver will exceed the established criteria prescribed by the governor in terms of its intrinsic value, convertibility and flexibility. It is entirely independent from the economic conditions and geo-economic interests of any single country and directly addresses the Triffin dilemma by providing liquidity while maintaining value.
Similarly, it is a far superior alternative to the Bancor currency proposal of John Maynard Keynes whose world currency unit fixed in terms of 30 commodities seems impractical and unstable. ………………………………………Full Article: Source

From Gulfnews.com: Primary bond issues from the Middle East and North Africa (Mena) region is expected to exceed $30 billion (Dh110.1 billion) reported this year as governments and public sector entities need to finance infrastructure projects and refinance their maturing short-term debts, a senior banker at HSBC Holdings PLC (HBC) said yesterday.
“Primary bond issues from the Middle East and North Africa [Mena] region next year is expected to exceed the $30 billion level recorded last year. We expect the bond issue volumes from the region to surge due to higher demand for longer term funding for infrastructure and refinancing of short-term debt,” said Andrew Dell, HSBC’s head of debt capital markets for Mena told reporters……………………………………….Full Article: Source

From Thenational.ae: Nakheel, the developer behind Dubai’s palm-shaped islands, will hand over Dh6 billion (US$1.63bn) worth of Islamic bonds to contractors by the end of next month. The move is one way in which Nakheel is trying to pay for work already completed on its ambitious developments, which include the three Palm islands and The World, a man-made archipelago off the coast of Dubai in the shape of a map of the globe.
Nakheel is also behind several residential projects on the western end of Dubai that contain thousands of villas……………………………………….Full Article: Source

From Thestar.com.my: The National Bank of Abu Dhabi (NBAD) has issued its second sukuk in Malaysia worth RM500mil. The offering received strong investor demand despite the challenging year-end timing and was more than two times oversubscribed, the bank said in a statement.
It was issued under NBAD’s ringgit medium term notes programme. The 10-year issue came six months after NBAD’s first ever sukuk issuance……………………………………….Full Article: Source

From Zawya.com: France will be ready to issue the first Islamic bond issue early next year as the legal framework is in final stage, a former special adviser to financial affairs at the French Treasury said in Dubai on Wednesday.
“We still have to work on some issues for it [Islamic bond or sukuk] but it’s a matter of weeks and then we will be ready in the beginning of 2011,” Thierry Dissaux, who is also Chief Executive of the French Deposits Guarantee Fund,said……………………………………….Full Article: Source

From Tradearabia.com: A top Islamic finance body has approved France’s model to issue local sukuk, or Islamic bonds, which would ease their listing on the Paris financial market, a French official has revealed.
The Accounting and Auditing Organisation for Islamic Financial Institutions (AAOIFI) has approved the Islamic bond model aimed to marry France’s tax laws with the Islamic financial instrument, Thierry Dissaux, the chief executive officer of the French Deposit Guarantee Fund, was quoted as saying in a report in our sister newspaper Gulf Daily News……………………………………….Full Article: Source

From Bloomberg: Qatar Islamic Bank SAQ plans to offer Islamic certificates of deposits as early as the first quarter as the country’s biggest shariah-compliant lender seeks to create a secondary market for such instruments.
The transactions, which need approval from the central bank and the bank’s shariah board, will be transferable and tradable, with possible tenors ranging from one to five years, Choudhry Mohammed Wasi, general manager of strategy and marketing at the bank, said in an interview in Doha yesterday……………………………………….Full Article: Source

From Bernama: A more productive way to make Islamic products acceptable and attractive to the non-Muslim market, is by allowing the products to speak for themselves, says the Raja Muda of Perak, Raja Dr Nazrin Shah.
He said the design and promotion of Islamic products should reflect high standards that employ ethical practices as prescribed by Islam……………………………………….Full Article: Source

From Arabtimesonline.com: The Development and Research Unit Manager at Kuwait Finance House (KFH) Adnan Al-Mulla stated that the supervisory and legislative Fatwa authorities at banks and financial institutions seek to reinforce the culture of Islamic economy in the employees, who serve as a link between the bank and the clients through services and products offered by the employees who represent the bank.
He explained that KFH relies on Shariah in its training policy, and that the employee gradually studies the tools and principles of Islamic economy……………………………………….Full Article: Source

From Allafrica.com: The Central Bank of Nigeria said it will soon release its final regulatory and supervisory framework for the effective operation of non-interest or Islamic banking in Nigeria.
Special Assistant to the CBN governor on Non-interest Banking, Dr. Bashir Aliyu Umar, said the Islamic Banking sector worldwide, had grown at a stronger rate of 15-20 per cent annually over the past decade, from about 150 billion dollars in the mid-1990s to an estimated 780 billion dollars in 2009, adding that its assets are expected to grow by more than 20 per cent to 950billion dollars in 2010……………………………………….Full Article: Source

From Gulf-times.com: Qatar-based Al khaliji bank in association with its subsidiary Al Khaliji France acted as mandated lead arranger on the recently signed 1.14bn UAE dirham ($310mn) amortising term facility for the UAE-based Majid Al Futtaim (MAF) Group.
“The transaction was oversubscribed and upsized due to the strong demand,” al khaliji said……………………………………….Full Article: Source

From Opalesque: The concept of deposit insurance in the Islamic finance industry is still relatively new as practitioners are struggling to comprehend whether it conforms to Sharia. Very few countries with Islamic economies have an Islamic deposit insurance system in place as it is a complicated balance between maintaining profit-loss sharing Sharia principles and protecting bank customers (Baeshen, 2010).
Islamic deposit insurance is a Sharia-compliant system that provides protection to depositors against the potential loss of an Islamic bank’s failure (Arshad, 2009)……………………………………….Full Article: Source

From Brudirect.com: For the convenience of customers to purchase Takaful Brunei Darussalam varieties of insurance products at Seria Post Office, a ceremony was held to unveil the new Takaful counters at the post office in Belait District yesterday morning.
The services provided by Takaful Company are in line with the Postal Services Department’s strategy to turn the outlets as a one-stop community centre……………………………………….Full Article: Source

Great Eastern Takaful Sdn. Bhd., a joint venture between I Great Capital Holdings (i-Great), a subsidiary of Great Eastern Holdings Ltd. and Koperasi Angkatan Tentera Bhd., a multipurpose cooperative, has commenced business in Malaysia.
Malaysia-based Great Eastern Takaful offers comprehensive takaful, or Islam-compliant insurance products and services, with the aim to achieve 180 million ringgit (US$57.2 million) in total weighted contributions for its first year……………………………………….Full Press Release: Source

From Bt.com.bn: Regulatory frameworks for the Islamic finance industry in Brunei plays a “key role” in how this industry will develop but transparency and consumer protection is as important, according to acting managing director of Bank Islam Brunei Darussalam (BIBD), Javed Ahmad.
On the sidelines of the recent Islamic Finance News (IFN) Roadshow 2010, Javed revealed exclusively to The Brunei Times, his prospects for BIBD in 2011 and key elements of development in the Islamic Finance industry’s growth……………………………………….Full Article: Source