From Ameinfo.com: As the economies of the oil producing countries of the Middle East and North Africa (Mena) region have boomed over recent years most areas of finance have witnessed spectacular growth rates.

Islamic private equity, however, has not been a particularly large beneficiary of this growth. The reasons for this are hard to fathom……….Full Article: Source

From Btimes.com.my: Asian bond spreads widened today as weak US jobs and services data deterred investors from buying riskier assets, dragging down newly-issued debt from Malaysia’s Petronas.

State oil company Petronas sold US$4.5 billion of debt yesterday in two parts, consisting of US$3 billion in 10-year, 5.25 per cent conventional debt and US$1.5 billion of five-year, 4.25 per cent sukuk. The bonds were priced to yield 162.5 basis points (bps) over comparable U.S. Treasuries……….Full Article: Source

From Btimes.com.my: Petrolian Nasional Bhd (Petronas)’s US$4.5 billion (US$1 = RM3.50) bond sale, the biggest US dollar issue by an Asian company outside Japan this year, signals a growing appetite for debt sold by the region’s state-owned energy companies.

“There’s a lot of money and liquidity out there,” said Choo Swee Kee, who manages about US$202 million as chief investment officer at TA Investment Management Bhd. “So for anything that people view as having a reasonable quality, there is a lot of demand.”………Full Article: Source

From Campdenfb.com: Conventional finance and thinking has been the norm for the last century, in tandem with the Anglo-American dominance of the world economy.
However, it is now clear that an era of re-balancing is underway and one of the beneficiaries could be Sharia-compliant vehicles……….Full Article: Source

From Reuters: Bahrain-based Islamic investment bank Gulf Finance House said on Thursday it plans a capital hike of upto $500 million to beef up its balance sheet to weather the global crisis and make investments.

GFH, which specialises in developing and arranging financing for large real estate and infrastructure projects, posted two consecutive quarterly losses as these sectors were hit by the economic slowdown in the Gulf Arab region……….Full Article: Source

From Tradearabia.com: Global Islamic bond issuance this year is likely to be around last year’s $14.25 billion level, with sales in Malaysia expected to account for more than half, the world’s top sukuk manager has said.

Issuance from Malaysia, the world’s largest Islamic bond market, is expected to total at least $8.3 billion this year, compared with $6.3 billion last year and $17.7 billion in 2007, AmInvestment Bank head of Islamic markets Mohammed Effendi Abdullah, was quoted as saying in a report in our sister newspaper Gulf Daily News……….Full Article: Source

From Gulfnews.com: The UAE Central Bank should either buy securities from local banks to help ease liquidity in the economy or loosen a cap on lending, the chief of the country’s second-biggest bank said.

“There has to be either some quantitative easing by the Central Bank broadly speaking by buying in securities” from banks and giving them money “or some easing in the ratios”, Michael Tomalin, head of the National Bank of Abu Dhabi, said in an interview in Abu Dhabi on Wednesday……….Full Article: Source

From Gulf-daily-news.com: The impact of two Bahrain-based banks owned by Saudi groups on the Bahraini banking system is limited and there is no systemic risk, Central Bank of Bahrain (CBB) Governor Rasheed Al Maraj told Al Arabiya television yesterday.

The CBB last week assumed control of Saad Group’s Awal Bank and The International Banking Corporation (TIBC), owned by Ahmad Hamad Algosaibi & Brothers, citing a substantial shortfall in their assets compared with their liabilities……….Full Article: Source

From Zawya.com: The Kuwait Finance House (KFH) said an irrevocable judicial decision allowing it to bankroll land and housing deals in line with Islamic financing formulas would be put in effect as of today.
The Property Registration Department at the Ministry of Justice has put the final decision in force in favor of the KFH, KFH Legal Section Chief Mansour Abu Ebeid said in a news release……….Full Article: Source

From Kuwaittimes.net: Bahrain’s sovereign wealth fund Mumtalakat plans to choose a rating agency before the end of the year, its chief executive said yesterday, a move that would pave the way for the fund to access capital markets.
This would make Mumtalakat the first regional sovereign wealth fund (SWF) with a credit rating. It has said it would seek a rating before tapping the debt market……….Full Article: Source

From Dailymirror.lk: The Insurance Board of Sri Lanka (IBSL) has suspended the registration of Ceylinco Takaful Limited in respect of General Insurance Business in terms of Section 18 of the Regulation of Insurance Industry Act No. 43 of 2000 for a period of three weeks with effect from August 5.

Accordingly, Ceylinco Takaful Limited is prohibited from issuing new insurance policies in respect of General Insurance Business until the suspension is removed and informed in writing to Ceylinco Takaful Limited by the IBSL, sources said……….Full Article: Source

From Reuters: Swiss private bank Sarasin said on Thursday it was pulling out of a planned joint venture in Bahrain and would surrender its investment licence in the country.

The termination of the deal contrasts sharply with other efforts by the bank, along with many of its private banking peers, to expand into the fast-growing Middle East region……….Full Article: Source

From Cpifinancial.net: Drake & Scull International (DSI) PJSC is now on the list of Shari’ah-compliant companies, making it the only specialist contractor listed on the bourse.
Khaled Jarrar, Chief Financial Officer of DSI said that this move is very important to the company and its relationships with investors……….Full Article: Source

From Zawya.com: The Securities & Investment Institute (SII) has signed an agreement with the Institute of Islamic Banking and Insurance (IIBI) to promote the UK as the hub of Islamic finance.

The London-based IIBI is one of the world’s leading independent organisations dedicated to the development and implementation of Islamic finance, achieved through education, training, research and publications……….Full Article: Source

From Arabianbusiness.com: The National Bank of Bahrain and BBK have been placed on review for downgrade by ratings agency Moody’s.

At the same time, the ratings of a third Bahraini retail bank, BMI BSC, were affirmed at Baa2, according to a media release……….Full Article: Source

From Globalarabnetwork.com: Tamweel’s Prime-2 short-term issuer rating is unchanged.

The ratings remain on review with direction uncertain. The rating on Tamweel’s senior unsecured debt — namely its AED1.1 billion sukuk trust certificates due 2013 — was also downgraded to Baa1 from A3, and remains on review with direction uncertain……….Full Article: Source