From Arabnews.com: Another sign that the Chinese island enclave of Hong Kong, the world’s third largest financial center after New York and London, means business in facilitating Islamic finance in its jurisdiction is the announcement in the 2009/10 budget that the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region government will send a draft law to the Legislative Council during this year aimed at creating a level playing field between Islamic financial products and conventional ones.

The move has been widely welcomed by Islamic finance market players in the region and further afield in GCC (Gulf Cooperation Council) countries and Europe…… Full Article: Source

From Canadafreepress.com: We are now seeing the third round of bailouts for Citigroup, after the US government already has taken a 36 percent stake in the bank. This makes the US government the largest shareholder of a bank, whose second largest shareholder is Saudi Prince Alaweed Bin Talal.

Currently American taxpayers are in hock for 45 billion dollars to bailout Citigroup, while the Treasury, the FDIC and the Federal Reserve cover 90 percent of Citi’s 335 billion dollar losses. The numbers are scary and since most financial experts predict that the bailout isn’t done yet, is likely to only be the beginning. It’s unclear how much US taxpayer will have to go into debt in order to bail out Citigroup. …. Full Article: Source

From Bdafrica.com: A raging global financial crisis has won Islamic finance backing from an unexpected source – the Vatican.

In an article in its weekly newspaper, the Vatican says ethical principles upon which Islamic finance is based offers the best chance of getting banks closer to their clients and “to the true spirit that should mark every financial service.”…. Full Article: Source

From Christiantoday.com: The British Government will be capitulating to Islamic religious law if they change the current financial regulations to accommodate sharia finance and issue Islamic or ’sukuk’ bonds, warn Christian Concern for our Nation and the Christian Legal Centre.

The Government has publicised its support for Islamic or shariah compliant finance and has stated its intention to facilitate the growth of the sector so that London remains Europe’s gateway to international Islamic finance….. Full Article: Source

From Arabianbusiness.com: Bahrain-based Islamic lender Ithmaar has put the planned merger of its unit Shamil Bank with partly owned retail bank BBK on hold due to market uncertainty.

Ithmaar said in a statement its board had “reviewed its 2009 strategy in light of the ongoing financial uncertainty” and would put the planned merger on hold, without providing further details….. Full Article: Source

From Arabianbusiness.com: The Islamic Development Bank aims to increase its lending this year by 15 percent from $4.5bn in 2008, helped by raising funds from a planned sharia-compliant bond, its president said on Monday.

“This year, actually, our plan is to increase (lending) 15 percent but probably it depends on our ability for mobilisation of resources, as you know the market is not clear,” Ahmad Mohamed Ali, president of the IDB, told reporters….. Full Article: Source

From Arabtimesonline.com: Euromoney granted Kuwait Finance House (KFH) two awards, which are Best Islamic Bank in the Middle East and Best Islamic Real Estate Provider.

Euromoney asserted the success of the global expansion policy that allowed KFH to be present in global markets by taking Turkey, Bahrain and Malaysia as platforms for such expansion, in addition to making them operational bases for its business in the Gulf, Asian and European markets….. Full Article: Source

From Saudigazette.com.sa: Saudi Hollandi Bank were honoured by Islamic Finance News at an awards ceremony in Dubai Saturday night, winning the “Equity Deal of the Year” award for their recent SR775 million Sukuk deal.

This was the first Tier II capital issuance in the Islamic space in the Middle East, said a press release. The issue is Mudarabah-based, and generates an expected yield for the investors of SIBOR plus 200 basis points with a step-up in the yield after five years….. Full Article: Source

From Ameinfo.com: Badr Al-Islami, the Islamic Banking Division of Mashreq, won the ‘Sukuk Deal of the Year 2008′ award from the prestigious Islamic Finance News Awards, for being the Joint Lead Manager and Bookrunner in the Dhs1.1bn Tamweel Sukuk.

The Awards were given at the annual awards ceremony of Islamic Finance News in Grand Hyatt, Dubai on the 3rd of March 2009 to Badr Al Islami, Dubai Islamic Bank, and Standard Chartered Bank as Joint Lead Managers and Bookrunners….. Full Article: Source

From Menafn.com: New products along with the promise of an expanded bond market could herald an era of fresh dynamism for Dubai’s capital markets, despite their difficult time of late.

Currently, the emirate is almost spoiled for choice in its capital markets, with two main exchanges for bonds and equities, along with the Dubai Gold and Commodities Exchange, which trades in commodity derivatives, and the Dubai Mercantile Exchange, which trades in energy and commodities….. Full Article: Source

From Pakistanlink.com: Finance Adviser Shaukat Tareen on Saturday called on Saudi Minister for Finance Dr Ibrahim Bin Abdul Aziz Al Assaf and discussed issues related to Pakistan’s economy.

During the meeting, the two leaders discussed issues relating to Pakistan’s economic development and reforms and the role of the Saudi Development Fund in development projects in Pakistan….. Full Article: Source

From Bt.com.bn: The fifth World Islamic Economic Forum (WIEF) was held last week (March, 2-4) in Jakarta, Indonesia. The global Islamic financing industry has over US$1 trillion in assets. But the member states of WIEF account for 19 per cent of the world’s population and only six per cent of its income. (The Jakarta Post, March, 03).

The forum took place alongside a deepening Western banking crisis and recession….. Full Article: Source

From Cpaaustralia.com.au: An Islamic finance encyclopaedia was recently launched in Kuala Lumpur by Securities Commission of Malaysia chair Datuk Seri Zarinah Anwar.

Islamic finance encyclopaedia is a reliable reference guide co-authored by experts in the field, Dr Zaha Rina Zahari, Professor Bala Shanmugan and Nafis Alam. It lists Islamic finance terms, structures, scholars and industry practitioners….. Full Article: Source

From Time.com: In the early 1990s, Pakistan was in a state of euphoria. Islamic holy warriors, many from cities like Rawalpindi, had defeated the Soviet army in Afghanistan, and jihad was on everyone’s lips.

In 1990, Muslims in Kashmir — the Himalayan territory that India and Pakistan have been arguing and fighting over since 1948 — rose up against Indian rule, and the mujahedin soon found a new cause….. Full Article: Source