From Guardian: A dual system which has both Islamic and conventional benchmark financing rates could throw markets into disarray, a respected sharia scholar said, highlighting the difficulty in creating a rate that would free Islamic banks from interest-based markets.
The $1 trillion Islamic finance sector is trying to establish a sharia equivalent of the London Interbank Offered Rate, which banks use globally to price products….. Full Article: Source

From Cpifinancial.net: Middle East private equity fund managers raised a record $6.4 billion in 2008, up more than 10 per cent over 2007 and more than double the amount raised in 2005, according to Gulf Venture Capital Association’s (GVCA) 2008 report on Private Equity & Venture Capital in the Middle East.

Large size funds are primarily responsible for this growth, with the average fund size in 2008 being $258 million, compared with $213 million in 2007 and just $177 million in 2006. This trend is driven by the need for more flexibility in structuring deals and the past success of large buyout transactions, according to the 2008 GVCA report….. Full Article: Source

From Gulfnews.com: Private equity firms in the Middle East have $11 billion (Dh40.37 billion) ready for investment but deals are hard to come by and exit routes are scarce in the current economic downturn, an industry report revealed on Monday.

Fund managers last year collected $6.4 billion, 10 per cent more than the previous year, according to the Gulf Venture Capital Association (GVCA) report for 2008….. Full Article: Source

From Indiatimes.com: The current financial year has seen three Shariah compliant products launches. However, the success of such offerings in India remains to be seen.

Reliance Money launched Shariah compliant portfolio management services, Benchmark floated an ETF on similar lines and Taurus Mutual Fund launched a scheme on the same principles. Shariah is an Islamic law that forbids investments in companies which deal in pork, alcohol, gambling, financials, advertising and media, pornography and tobacco, among others. …. Full Article: Source

From Commodityonline.com: Mad gold rush has resulted in a boom for the Muslim world. The recession-induced safe haven status for gold has provided a big opportunity for the Shariah-compliant gold funds, which are now doing roaring business.

Reasons are many for this love for Shariah-compliant gold funds. First thing to notice is that at a time when the world has lost faith in everything, what will be the best bet for an investor who is dogged by the perennial fear of losing his money in equity markets….. Full Article: Source

From Maktoob.com: Ministry of Finance has signed an agreement with Ajman Bank, the emirate’s first Islamic commercial bank, enabling them to become the first to market and sell e-Dirham cards in Ajman. In doing so they will be joining numbers of other financial institutions that provide e-Dirham cards across the UAE.

The Bank, which officially launched operations last month, will now be able to offer e-dirham cards to public and private sector clients, facilitating payments and revenue collection with Government through the Ministry of Finance’s central network….. Full Article: Source

From Bloomberg: Investment Dar Co., the Kuwaiti financial services company that owns half of Aston Martin, said it may sell “non-core assets” to meet payments and reduce financial obligations.

“As part of the proposed plan, TID is seeking that its banks and investors would agree to a restructuring of the existing financial commitments under a new Shariah-compliant capital structure, without a reduction in TID’s overall obligations,” the company said today in an e-mailed statement. …. Full Article: Source

From Gulfnews.com: The general economic uncertainty is hindering private equity deals in the region, financial industry executives feel. Frederic Sicre, executive director at Abraaj Capital, said the expectation last year was that the first quarter of 2009 would provide a better picture of the market but “we are not seeing any clearer.”

Although valuations of potential assets are down in the changed economic environment, companies are waiting to see more stability….. Full Article: Source

From Ameinfo.com: United Gulf Bank’s Board of Directors has recommended a cash dividend of 74% per share ($18.5 cents per share) for 2008, a total of $150.6m, for the approval of Bank’s General Assembly.
This compares to the 65% ($16.25 cents per share) cash dividend made in 2007. Kipco, the major shareholder, will underwrite up to $130m for UGB in subordinated Tier II capital to add to the Bank’s financial strength, if required….. Full Article: Source

From Sharecast.com: Islamic Bank of Britain (IBB), the shariah compliant bank, narrowed losses by 15% for the year and said it fared well due to its minimum exposure on higher risk assets but warned results in 2009 will be impacted by low interest rates.

The economic environment undoubtedly makes 2009 a challenging year. However, the Directors believe IBB will be well positioned to benefit from the eventual recovery particularly with a reinforced capital base. …. Full Article: Source

From Bloomberg: Pakistan plans to raise $500 million in the next 12 months through bonds aimed at Middle East investors as a debt sale in other overseas markets would be too expensive, central bank Governor Syed Salim Raza said.

“The credit-default swap rate for Pakistan is still high so to go to cold-nosed commercial markets wouldn’t suit us,” Raza, 63, who worked for Citigroup Inc. for 36 years in the Middle East, Africa and Europe, said in an interview. “But there are a number of countries in the region who understand Pakistan’s politics very well.” …. Full Article: Source

From Albawaba.com: Unicorn Investment Bank announces a record 2008 operating profit of US$73.8 million before impairments and fair value write-downs, an increase of 46% from US$50.4 million in 2007. Net profit after impairments and fair value write-downs was US$35.0 million. Earnings per share were 18.7 US cents.

The results are the culmination of a strong year for Unicorn, in which the Bank also further strengthened its capital and funding base. In January, the Bank successfully closed a 3-year syndicated commodity Murabaha facility that was significantly oversubscribed, raising US$125 million. Despite the global financial crisis, Unicorn also successfully raised new capital through an international private placement….. Full Article: Source

From Rfpconnect.com: Path Solutions, the software provider for the Islamic banking industry, announced that Bank Muamalat Malaysia Berhad (BMMB) has selected Path’s Enterprise Islamic Banking application to provide a centralized, front-to-back office core banking platform for its Islamic, Retail, Corporate and Investment banking operations.

The historic agreement between BMMB and Path Solutions is the first of its kind and reflects the confidence BMMB has in the future of enterprise Islamic banking technologies….. Full Article: Source

From Gulfnews.com: All economic aspects of Dubai’s Strategic Plan 2015 are currently under review to help stabilise the economy and safeguard jobs, a senior government economist said on Monday.

“Everything has been put on the table, the stimulus package and policies, with one aim - to safeguard jobs. There are no policies that are not being reviewed,” said Raed Safadi, chief economist at Dubai’s Department of Economic Development, during a Middle East Economic Digest (MEED) mega project conference….. Full Article: Source

From Ameinfo.com: Standard Chartered is predicting inflation levels will fall to 2-3% this year in the UAE, but warned that the market was still suffering from a lack of liquidity of around Dhs110bn.

While 2009 will be a tough year, the bank believes that the Middle East, Africa and Asia will start to recover next year, earlier than markets in western nations such as the US and UK….. Full Article: Source

From Gulfnews.com: Dubai-based Mashreq said on Sunday it would convert federal government deposits into regulatory capital after similar moves by several United Arab Emirates banks seeking to improve asset quality as the financial crisis bites.

Banks in the second-largest Arab economy, where Dubai is facing a real estate price correction, are looking to shore up their stockpile of capital as loan defaults mount and they take provisions for more bad loans to come….. Full Article: Source