From Gulfnews.com: The global Islamic finance industry is now worth more than $1 trillion (Dh3.67 trillion) in terms of assets, having quadrupled in the last three years, as it concentrates more on diversification.

Unsurprisingly perhaps, nine of the top ten Sharia-compliant financial assets by country, are based in the Middle East and Asia. The tenth is in the UK………Full Article: Source

From Arabianbusiness.com: Islamic investment banks are too dependent upon real estate for their investment activity and they need to diversify into other asset classes, according to a report published on Monday.

Islamic Investment Banking 2009, published by Yasaar Media and co-published by Unicorn Investment Bank and Doha Islamic………Full Article: Source

From Forexpros.com: Private-sector corporates in the Gulf Arab region are unlikely to issue Islamic bonds before next year as sluggish investor confidence keeps pricing at high levels, an Islamic finance executive said.

A recent string of sovereign Islamic bonds, or sukuks, issued in the region by governments or government-affiliated entities has spurred hopes for a revival as they provide the necessary benchmark pricing for the private sector to gauge investor appetite………Full Article: Source

From Arabianbusiness.com: Dubai property developer Nakheel said on Monday it is revising the redemption terms for its $750 million sukuk which matures in 2011, as concerns over how it will repay its debt weigh on the market.

The state-owned developer of palm-shaped islands off the coast of Dubai also has $3.5 billion worth of Islamic bonds which mature in December, and questions remain over the government’s plan for them………Full Article: Source

From Ibtimes.com: Islamic finance is experiencing a resurgence in the Arab world as a result of the economic recession, according to Alex MacGillivray, senior partner at AccountAbility, one of the co-authors of a new report entitled Responsible Competitiveness in the Arab World 2009.

There’s a new buzz in the Arab world about Islamic finance, which tended to have a reputation of being “nice” yet offering “lower returns”, he says………Full Article: Source

From Reuters: Australia’s top investment bank Macquarie met bond investors in Malaysia last week, two sources familiar with the meetings said on Monday, with one saying it may consider a potential bond sale there and perhaps even an Islamic issue.

Both sources declined to be named because they are not authorised to speak to the press………Full Article: Source

From Albawaba.com: Saudi Arabia’s Kingdom Installment Company (KIC) announces that it has redeemed its maiden Sukuk issued in 2006, despite the exceptionally difficult circumstances in the international capital markets.

KSA MBS I International Sukuk was lead arranged by Unicorn Investment Bank, which also acted as Shari’ah Advisor and, along with Standard Bank Plc, Joint Bookrunner to the transaction………Full Article: Source

From Celent.com: Islamic banking has become a major global industry, with a growth rate of 10% to 15% per year over the last decade, reaching US$700 billion to $750 billion in assets worldwide.
Islamic banking is developed in the Middle East, on the rise in the Asia-Pacific region, and in an infancy stage in North Africa and Europe………Full Article: Source

From Bernama: There has been a marked decline in the issuance of both conventional bonds and sukuk (Islamic bonds), according to RAM Rating Services Bhd (RAM Ratings).

The rating house attributed this to the bleak economic landscape, dents in investor confidence and pricing hurdles………Full Article: Source

From Thenational.ae: Gulf banks with exposure to bad property loans could be forced under or require government funds to survive, according to the company that is restructuring Lehman Brothers.

Alvarez and Marsal, which is advising on Lehman, the world’s biggest bankruptcy, expects local lenders to face increasing exposure to property-related distressed debt this year………Full Article: Source

From Tradearabia.com: Yasaar Limited, a London-based provider of independent value-added Shariah compliance solutions to the Islamic banking, finance and insurance industry, has set up its human resources firm, Yasaar Human Capital, in Dubai.

Yasaar Human Capital, a specialist executive search and human resources firm working within the Islamic finance sphere, aims to capitalise on the growth and strength of the Islamic finance industry, said a senior official………Full Article: Source

From Globalarabnetwork.com: The Gulf Cooperation Council countries that were once viewed as potential rival banking and investment hubs have each developed individual strengths. They are now carving out specialised niches in the regional and global economy.
Looking at the Gulf’s financial centres, we must recognise that as an international centre for listings and trading Dubai is now well established………Full Article: Source

From Tradearabia.com: Islamic investment banks are too dependent on real estate for their investment activity and they need to diversify into other asset classes such as Islamic private equity and venture capital in order to weather economic crisis, says a new report.

According to “Islamic Investment Banking 2009,” published by Yasaar Media and co-published by Unicorn Investment Bank and Doha Islamic, the Islamic finance industry has seen significant shrinkage since the onset of the global financial crisis as the values of investments and deposits have declined in line with global markets………Full Article: Source

From Tradearabia.com: Saudi-based Riyad Bank said second-quarter net profit rose 1.8 percent as its core banking activities grew but it made no mention of new provisions despite worries about exposure to two troubled conglomerates.

Riyad, Saudi Arabia’s third-largest lender by market value, made a net profit of 918 million riyals ($244.8 million) in the three months ending June 30, 2009, up from 906 million riyals in the year-earlier period………Full Article: Source

From Thestar.com.my: Bank Islam Malaysia Bhd is confident its Al-Awfar account will register savings and investments worth RM300mil by September.
According to consumer banking division general manager Khairul Kamarudin, the bank had already reached half its target by end-June………Full Article: Source

From Ameinfo.com: Dubai Islamic Bank (DIB), the largest Islamic bank in the UAE, announced the launch of a one-year Islamic Certificate linked to the Crescent Commodity Twister Strategy developed by ABN AMRO Bank.
This US dollar-denominated certificate, which offers investors ideal exposure to the global commodities market based on a dynamic strategy that has been designed to generate positive returns in both bull and bear-trending markets, seeks to generate 96% capital protection upon maturity………Full Article: Source

From Funds-europe.com: Sharia-compliant investment management is concerned with investments in assets that are in compliance with Islamic law. An Islamic investor is not allowed to invest in companies that derive most of their revenue from non-Sharia-compliant business activities, or that use interest in operating or financing their business.
In the context of investing in equities, screening for Sharia compliance is ensured using two main screens: business activities and financial ratios………Full Article: Source