Eurasian Development Bank, a Russian-led lender backed by six former Soviet republics, wants to expand Shariah-compliant financing after helping arrange a deal last year, Chief Executive Officer Igor Finogenov said.
“Islamic finance is an opportunity for us to enter new credit markets,” Finogenov told reporters in Moscow today. “We hope it will allow us to diversify our liability base.”……………………………………….Full Article: Source

Part-time currency traders, beware: You might be violating Muslim law, at least in Malaysia. An Islamic body last week warned Muslims that participating in individual spot foreign exchange trading through electronic platforms is in conflict with Islamic laws.
The National Fatwa Council, which comes under the nation’s Department of Islamic Development (the main agency handling Islamic affairs at the federal level), said that a study by a committee found that such trading involves currency speculation, which is against Islamic laws. It is therefore “haram,” or forbidden, for Muslims, it said………………………………………..Full Article: Source

Bank Sarasin reviews the complexities of converting a business to Islam, a topic which is rarely discussed or written about. Conversion is complicated by the need to address every aspect of a business, the lack of broadly accepted standards and regulations, and differences in the Muslim world itself.
Converting a business to Islam can increase the value of a company by 18-25% due to the scarcity of genuine Islamic investments. But the conversion process is arduous, extending from the design to distribution and beyond, to how the company spends its profits. (Press Release)

The Gulf Co-operation Council (GCC) should have a unified rule under one regulator for Islamic investment products for ensuring lower cost of funds, according to Islamic Wealth Management (IWM) Report 2012.
“The GCC countries could take a leadership role by establishing standards for the registration of Islamic investment products with one regulator,” the Bank Sarasin report said. The report was launched by Bank Sarasin managing director and head of Islamic Finance Fares Mourad and Monzer Kahf, a leading Islamic finance scholar………………………………………..Full Article: Source

Converting a conventional business into a Shariah-principled entity can enhance the value of the company by 18%-25%, according to the Islamic Wealth Management (IWM) Report 2012. Moreover, the non-bankable assets of family-run companies needed further diversification, the report said.
“Converting a business to Islamic finance can increase the value of a company by 18%-25% due to the scarcity of genuine Islamic investments,” it said………………………………………..Full Article: Source

London has been providing Islamic financial services for 30 years, but in recent years the industry has started to attain a greater profile.
The United Kingdom ranks ninth globally amongst countries providing Islamic finance services, according to a May 2011 CityUK report. That makes it the leading Western country and Europe’s premier Islamic finance center with USD 19 billion of reported assets. London has been providing Islamic financial services for 30 years, but in recent years the industry has started to attain a greater profile………………………………………..Full Article: Source

The success of Saudi Arabia’s first government-backed Islamic bond issue, and the dairy company Almarai’s planned sukuk, will set the stage for what is likely to be one of the kingdom’s strongest years for Islamic bonds, bankers and analysts say, with HSBC alone saying it is working on five corporate issuances.
The Almarai bond, for which a roadshow is planned later this week, plus the four as-yet-unannounced sukuk issues that HSBC is also preparing, would total “multiple billions” of Saudi riyals, Fahad al-Saif, the head of HSBC’s debt-capital market division in Saudi Arabia, said in a recent interview………………………………………..Full Article: Source

The Libyan Foreign Bank will offer Shariah-compliant products as the government prepares regulation to make Islamic banking the norm in the North African nation following the ouster of Muammar Qaddafi.
“Islamic products are being introduced and will predominate, but we will not relinquish the use of traditional banking,” General Manager Mohamed Ben Yusef said in an interview today in Tripoli. “A decision will be made by the Central Bank of Libya by the end of March to introduce a new article in the banking law regarding Islamic governance.”……………………………………….Full Article: Source

Bank of London and The Middle East Plc, the London-based Islamic bank, signed a 14 million-pound ($22 million) deal to help Global Marine Systems Ltd. buy a vessel to install subsea power cables at offshore wind farms.
The leasing transaction with the Essex, England-based marine technology and engineering company is the Shariah- compliant bank’s first in the renewable energy industry, according to a statement from the bank………………………………………..Full Article: Source

The shareholding fund of the bank is just about 6.3 billion Islamic dinar which is equivalent to about $10 billion. The shareholding fund includes reserve and profit. The paid up capital is $4.6 billion.
That is a basic standard. If you were to do the calculation, it should be half of 7.5 percent of the paid up capital which is at present a little over $6 billion. When the last increase of the paid up capital was done in 2006, a substantial portion of it, 70 percent, is payable over a period of 10 years………………………………………..Full Article: Source

Some financial experts have said that the introduction of none-interest banking would bring about healthy competition in the banking sector. The experts, who spoke with newsmen in Lagos on Monday, said that non-interest banking would impact positively on the real sector of the economy.
According to them, it will add more value to business and boost productivity in the country. They all agreed that there is nothing wrong with introduction of Islamic banking if it would bring economic development……………………………………….Full Article: Source

The Islamic Development Bank, a Saudi Arabia-based multilateral lender, approved $668 million in loans to finance projects in 12 countries, the Saudi Press Agency reported, citing the bank.
The loans include $229 million for a 304-kilometer (189- mile) high-speed rail line linking Turkey’s capital Ankara with Konya and $228 million for a sewerage network west of the Iranian capital Tehran, the news service said………………………………………..Full Article: Source

The annual profit-after-tax of Meezan Bank has surged by 106 percent to Rs3.4 billion against Rs1.6 billion in 2010, an official said on Monday.
The earning per share also increased to Rs4.22 from 2.05 recorded last year, he said. This was disclosed by Sheikh Ebrahim Bin Khalifa Al Khalifa, Chairman, Meezan Bank, during the announcement of the financial results for 2011 at a press conference………………………………………..Full Article: Source

Abu Dhabi Islamic Bank, a top-tier Islamic financial services institution, announced today a reduced profit rate for ADIB Education Finance in a promotion that lasts till 31st March 2012.
Customers can apply for ADIB Education Finance of up to AED 250,000. They can also benefit from a flexible repayment period of up to 48 months, no processing fees, free postponement options and a free Visa Covered Card………………………………………..Full Article: Source

The Association of Islamic Banking Institutions Malaysia (AIBIM) firmly denied the allegation that Islamic banking institutions in the country are reaping excessive profits.
“All Islamic banking institutions in Malaysia operates in accordance with Shariah values, are well regulated and are in compliance with the high standards established by Bank Negara Malaysia (BNM),” AIBIM president, Datuk Mohd Redza Shah, said in a statement Tuesday………………………………………..Full Article: Source

Oman Arab Bank (OAB) needs OMR 10 million to fund its Islamic banking operations, which it will raise through a rights issue.
The board of directors of Ominvest, which owns a 51 per cent stake in OAB, recently approved the proposed increase in OAB’s share capital by way of a rights issue, the money from which will be set apart for Islamic banking operations, reported the Muscat Daily. Ominvest’s contribution to OAB’s fresh capital requirements would be OMR 5.1 million………………………………………..Full Article: Source

Oman is looking at the possibility of promulgating bankruptcy and insolvency laws, said Abdullah Salem Al Salmi, acting executive vice-president of Capital Market Authority.
Participating at the sixth GCC (Gulf Cooperation Council) Regulators’ Summit that began yesterday at the Ritz Carlton Bustan Palace Hotel, Abdullah Salem Al Salmi said, “Oman certainly needs such laws. The idea is there and we are at the discussion level taking inputs from different sources and hopefully, in a short span of time, bankruptcy and insolvency laws would be in place.”……………………………………….Full Article: Source

International law firms Allen & Overy and Latham & Watkins recently advised Saudi Arabian telecom Etihad Etisalat (Mobily) on its 10 billion riyal ($2.7 billion) syndicated Islamic financing. The financing is one of the largest general syndicated Islamic financing transactions to date.
While Allen & Overy advised the lead arranging banks on the deal, Latham & Watkins advised Mobily on the transaction.  The Al Rajhi Banking & Investment Corporation, the Banque Saudi Fransi, the Riyad Bank, the Samba Financial Group, the Saudi Hollandi Bank, the National Commercial Bank, and the Saudi British Bank acted as lead arrangers of the deal………………………………………..Full Article: Source

KPMG has been named as best assurance and advisory firm at the Euromoney Islamic finance awards 2012. Now in its tenth year, this is the fifth consecutive occasion that the firm has received the accolade.
In making its decision, Euromoney explained KPMG had actively supported the development of the Islamic finance industry across the globe and particularly in new markets, citing its involvement in providing assurance and advisory services to over 65 Islamic financial businesses………………………………………..Full Article: Source

The brand Takaful IKHLAS once again received prestigious accolades with two international recognitions as the Best Takaful Provider from the Islamic Finance News and Euromoney Magazine recently.
The award from the Islamic Finance News is the forth consecutive recognition since 2008………………………………………..Full Article: Source