From Timesonline.co.uk: As the credit crunch has mutated inexorably into a recession, with bankers having eclipsed politicians, lawyers and even journalists as public enemy number one, the growing number of Islamic finance institutions in Britain might just be sitting pretty.

The UK now has five fully Sharia-compliant banks and another 17 financial institutions have set up special branches or firms. They include the Qatar Islamic Bank (QIB), with its London-based European Finance House in Berkeley Square, and the Islamic Bank of Britain, which has headquarters in Birmingham….. Full Article: Source

From Dailymirror.lk: In a ground-breaking move, Amana Investments have taken their products and services beyond the traditional market segment to some of Sri Lanka’s leading companies in the corporate business sector.

Amana pioneered Islamic financial services in the country as far back as 1997. It started off its business catering exclusively to the mandatory financial requirements of the Muslim community and over the years has established itself as a household brand name in the fields of Islamic finance, insurance, fund management, asset management, stock broking and corporate advisory services. …. Full Article: Source

From Btimes.com.my: PLUS Expressways Bhd, through PLUS SPV Bhd, has issued an additional RM745 million nominal value sukuk under its earlier announced sukuk programme. The programme is based on the Islamic principle of musyarakah to investors identified via a book-building process.

The book size was successfully increased from RM400 million nominal value Sukuk to RM745 million nominal value, the company told Bursa Malaysia in a filing yesterday….. Full Article: Source

From Gulfweeklyworldwide.com: Nexus, the region’s leading financial adviser, and Solidarity Family Takaful, launched a joint marketing agreement for Takaful product in Bahrain, designed to provide clients with a Sharia-compliant opportunity to protect wealth for the future.

Demand for Takaful products - products which are compliant with key Islamic tenets and based on the concept of shared responsibility - in the Middle East has increased sharply in recent months, with clients appreciating the benefits of the transparency and security of such products, as well as their adherence to Islamic ethical expectations. …. Full Article: Source

From Christian.org.uk: Islamic organisations receive more public funding for ‘equality’ than all other religious groups put together in Scotland, it has been revealed. Almost 60 per cent of all grants given out by the Equality Unit has gone to just five Muslim groups.

The groups were awarded £1.5 million of public money, dwarfing the £137,500 given to Christian charities and the £110,000 given to Jewish organisations. Muslims make up less than one per cent of Scotland’s population but two thirds identify themselves as Christians. …. Full Article: Source

From Southafrica.info: Absa Capital has launched South Africa’s first Shariah-compliant equity-linked exchange traded fund (ETF). The initial public offering for the NewFunds Shariah Top 40 Index ETF opened on 23 February, while the ETF will be listed on the JSE on 6 April.

“The Shariah Top 40 Index ETF is a first for South Africa and will redefine the Muslim investment landscape in South Africa,” Absa Capital’s Vladimir Nedeljkovic said in a statement last month….. Full Article: Source

From Zawya.com: Regional fund managers expect the emergence of several new Shariah-compliant funds focused on infrastructure projects, which offer returns in the range of 15 to 18 per cent.

Mark Lemmon, CEO of The Mena Infrastructure Fund, said: “We see opportunities in basic infrastructure projects. That has become more evident as countries become less dependent on hydrocarbons for running their economy. Several Gulf countries in the region have set a vision for the next several years. And they are not expected to move away from them during the economic downturn.”…. Full Article: Source

From Allafrica.com: The Middle East will remain a key source of capital for international fund managers, although they will need to become more attuned to the essentials of doing business here.

This conclusion was reached during a session of the Private Equity International Middle East Forum which brought together participants in the private equity industry from fund managers to investors to legal advisers. …. Full Article: Source

From Allafrica.com: In apparent determination to ensure compliance to the Sharia by banks interested in Islamic banking, the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), has released a draft framework for the regulation and supervision of the Shariah banking system.

According to information gathered from economic intelligence on line yesterday, “The apex bank said all licensed banks offering Shariah-compliant financial products or services shall have a Shariah compliance review mechanism and a Bank Shariah Advisory Committee (SAC), as part of their governance structure.”…. Full Article: Source

From Allafrica.com: The Managing Director of Jaiz International Bank, Alhaji Mustapha Bintube, has said the solution to the current global financial meltdown lies with the Islamic financial system.

Bintube gave the advice in Abuja while delivering a lecture entitled: ‘Global Economic Meltdown: Islamic Perspective and Solution’ at the second Mawlud Nabiyy public lecture organised by the Muslim Media Practitioners of Nigeria (MMPN), Abuja branch….. Full Article: Source

From Gulf-daily-news.com: Albaraka Banking Group launched a drive to implement new unified corporate identity across its subsidiaries. It announced the appointment of Intermarkets Bahrain as their communications consultant yesterday at a signing ceremony hosted at their head office in the Diplomatic Area.

The appointment comes into play as Albaraka Banking Group progresses towards implementing its new unified corporate identity across its subsidiaries in 12 countries and more than 280 branches regionally and internationally. …. Full Article: Source

From Thaipr.net: Three Shariah-compliant unit trust products will be made available at all OCBC Bank Malaysia and OCBC Al-Amin branches in Malaysia.

Oversea-Chinese Banking Corporation Limited, through its subsidiary OCBC Bank (Malaysia) Berhad, announced that OCBC Al-Amin Bank Berhad, the wholly-owned subsidiary of OCBC Bank Malaysia, is offering Shariah-compliant unit trust products for the first time….. Full Article: Source

From Gazeta.kz: The President of Islamic Development Bank, Ahmad Mohammed Ali Al Madani, informed after the meeting with the President of Kazakhstan, Nursultan Nazarbayev, on Tuesday Islamic Development Bank is ready to render all the necessary help for strengthening of Institutes of Islamic Finance in Kazakhstan, the agency reports.

“The portfolio of Islamic Development Bank has many projects, which will be realized in Kazakhstan. “We have many projects aimed, in particular, at development of rural territories of Kazakhstan,” the President of Islamic Development Bank said. …. Full Article: Source

From Wcco.com: A basic opportunity that many Americans have to own a home has been out of reach for Muslim Americans. However, it’s not necessarily that they can’t afford it — it’s because of a strict interpretation of Islamic law that prohibits the payment of interest.

But now through a state private partnership, a new type of mortgage is available. Through a partnership between the African Development Center and the Minnesota Housing Finance Agency, Islamic mortgages are available….. Full Article: Source

From Ameinfo.com: Islamic Banking has been the only financial sector which has escaped largely unaffected in the aftermath of the crisis. Now, more and more retail banks and their customers are looking towards Islamic Banking to provide stability and much needed confidence.

Jacob Fleming Conferences, keeping this in mind, has conceived the world’s first Islamic Retail Banking Conference, taking place in Dubai from 6-8 October 2009….. Full Article: Source

From Dailymirror.lk: First Global Investments Holdings (FGIH) recently launched its Islamic Micro-Finance programme which was targeted at alleviating poverty in the suburbs of Colombo. There were a total of 24 beneficiaries selected from destitute communities in Maradana, Slave Island, Kirulapone and Dehiwala.

This pioneering micro-finance programme is based on the principle of Murabaha or cost plus mark-up where the beneficiaries are supplied commodities by FGIH at cost plus a nominal mark-up which they would have to repay in monthly installments….. Full Article: Source

From Ameinfo.com: Fahed Faisal Boodai, Vice-Chairman of the Securities House-fully owned Gatehouse Bank, stated that the bank was awarded the World’s Best New Islamic Bank, in a poll conducted by Islamic Finance News magazine.
Boodai received the award in Dubai last Tuesday, in a special ceremony held on this occasion. …. Full Article: Source

From Cpifinancial.net: Doha Bank has signed an agreement with Vietnam Bank for Industry and Trade (Vietin Bank), Vietnam, the largest commercial bank in Vietnam for E Remittance banking services.

Commenting on the agreement, R Seetharaman, CEO, Doha Bank Group said, “The bank’s associations with Vietin Bank has enlarged the capability of Doha Bank to serve the Vietnamese community in Qatar in line with the bank’s existing services to other nationalities.”…. Full Article: Source

From Islamonline.net: The recent financial crisis which originated from the 2007 US sub-prime crisis has been labelled as the worst financial crisis since the Great Depression by George Soros, Joseph Stiglitz, and the International Monetary Fund (IMF) (Jaffee, 2008; Tong and Wei, 2008). It has now become a full-blown global economic crisis.

Due to the borderless nature of the global economy, the economic downturn in the United States has created a systemic shock that has been transmitted to the economies around the world. So, the crisis has inflicted heavy damage on markets and institutions at the core of the global financial system (IMF, 2008)….. Full Article: Source

From Star.com.jo: The effects of the global financial crisis are also being felt on the stock markets of the Arab world. It is no surprise, therefore, that finding ways out of the current crisis was at the top of the agenda at the recent World Islamic Economic Forum in Jakarta.

The feeling of panic or at least the fear of making major losses has reminded many Arabs, Iranians, and Muslims elsewhere around the world that some of what has happened might have been avoided if the tenets of Islam had been observed. After all, there is a banking system in the Muslim world that is based on religion, namely the Islamic banking or finance system….. Full Article: Source

From Tradearabia.com: Kuwait’s central bank has issued 107 million dinars ($362.1 million) of one-year treasury bonds carrying a coupon of 2.25 percent, in a move that analysts said would help soak up excess cash.

Central bank data showed it received 602 million dinars of bids for the bonds, which mature on March 10, 2010. Traders said the central bank also issued six-month treasury bills with a yield of 2.125 percent….. Full Article: Source

From Menareport.com: Standard & Poor’s Ratings Services said today it affirmed its ‘BBB’ long-term counterparty credit and insurer financial strength ratings on Bahrain-based non-life and life reinsurer Arab Insurance Group (B.S.C.) (ARIG), then withdrew the ratings at the company’s request.

As a result of the withdrawal, ARIG is no longer subject to ongoing surveillance by Standard & Poor’s. At the time of withdrawal, the rating reflected the company’s very strong capitalization despite the 19% reduction in shareholders’ equity in 2008, and the company’s good competitive position….. Full Article: Source

From Thejakartaglobe.com: A scholar on Tuesday called on Islamic leaders, Muslim organizations, students and scholars to take responsibility for their part in supporting a spate of patriarchal laws that erode gender equality in Indonesia, a scholar said on Tuesday.

Syafi’i Anwar, who heads the International Center for Islam and Pluralism, addressed the implementation of Shariah-inspired bylaws by local administrations in Indonesian provinces and districts….. Full Article: Source

From Europenews.dk: The West today is involved in a protracted and violent struggle with the forces of radical Islam. This conflict is intensely difficult, both because of our enemy’s dedication to his cause, and also, perhaps most of all, because of the enormous cultural shift that has occurred in Europe and America since the end of the Vietnam War.

Put simply, the citizens of Western states have lost their appetite for foreign wars; they have lost the hope of scoring any but temporary victories; and they have lost confidence in their way of life. Indeed, they are no longer sure what that way of life requires of them….. Full Article: Source