Posted on 09 November 2009 by Laxman | Email|Print
From Reuters: A sukuk default by Kuwait’s Investment Dar and debt restructuring at Saudi conglomerates have shaken confidence in the $1 trillion Islamic finance industry, fanning debate about investors’ protection and investors’ rights.
Billed as safer than traditional banking due to requirements for assets to underpin deals, Islamic bond holders worry they may not have any more legal safeguards than conventional counterparts in case of default, or perhaps even less, partly due to the untested nature of the process…………………………Full Article: Source
Posted on 09 November 2009 by Laxman | Email|Print
From Business24-7.ae: The effect of the economic downturn on the Gulf construction industry has been severe. From the funding perspective, the inability or unwillingness of the conventional commercial bank market, the traditional Atlas of debt for projects, to shoulder the burden of funding is the greatest consequence of the current crisis.
Project stakeholders must now often look elsewhere to supplement funding. Among the responses that have arisen to answer this call are greater government backing of projects through funding and guarantees, increased participation by multilateral lending and export credit agencies, and the return of bond financing to the project market…………………………Full Article: Source
Posted on 09 November 2009 by Laxman | Email|Print
From Tehrantimes.com: President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad put forward a proposal for the establishment of a joint foreign currency fund by the Organization of Islamic Countries’ (OIC) member states.
He made the statement in Tehran on Sunday before his departure to Ankara to take part in the 25th Session of the Standing Committee for Economic and Commercial Cooperation (COMCEC) of the OIC members…………………………Full Article: Source
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From Tradearabia.com: The International Finance Corporation, an affiliate of the World Bank, has announced the listing of its dollar-denominated $100 million issue on Nasdaq-Dubai, the DIFC’s international exchange.
The IFC Hilal Sukuk, which has been given a AAA rating with a five-year maturity, has set a milestone for Islamic Finance and for financial markets in the GCC, said a DIFC statement…………………………Full Article: Source
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From Maktoob.com: Dubai’s government said on Sunday it had repaid a $1 billion Islamic bond , or sukuk, from the emirate’s civil aviation authority which matured on Nov 4.
The global credit crunch has hurt Dubai, one of seven members of the United Arab Emirates, leaving markets guessing whether it can restructure an $80 billion debt pile built up in years’ of real-estate fuelled boom…………………………Full Article: Source
Posted on 09 November 2009 by Laxman | Email|Print
From Arabianbusiness.com: Words of confidence from Dubai policymakers may not convince investors anxiously awaiting the fate of Nakheel’s $3.5bn Islamic bond, and the next installment of the emirate’s $10bn bailout fund. Natsuko Waki and John Irish report.
Dubai’s move to repay and restructure some of its $80bn debt and a show of support from policymakers may not be enough to convince sceptical investors that the emirate could pay back its bond obligations…………………………Full Article: Source
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From Thenational.ae: As a veteran of the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), Paul Maco has had a unique role in helping to shape debt markets.
When he started out in the New York SEC office as an enforcement lawyer in the late 1970s, debt instruments such as bonds went largely ignored in favour of the more popular equities markets…………………………Full Article: Source
Posted on 09 November 2009 by Laxman | Email|Print
From Business24-7.ae: Nine-month provisions for 19 banks listed on UAE stock exchanges were up more than 178 per cent year-on-year while net profits fell 13.7 per cent at the end of the third quarter, Emirates Business research reveals.
Combined provisions of the 19 banks analysed by this paper rose to $2.2 billion (Dh8.2bn) in the nine-month period ended September 2009, from $801 million in the corresponding period of 2008…………………………Full Article: Source
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From Tradearabia.com: The United Arab Emirates central bank said on Sunday it is mulling new regulations for wholesale banks, mortgage loans and to protect consumers of financial services, but did not provide specifics.
The bank, which said it was conducting a detailed study of the issue, also plans to examine and amend regulations relating to the classification of loans and allocation of provisions after banks in the UAE made suggestions…………………………Full Article: Source
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From Globalarabnetwork.com: Having weathered the financial storm better than most, Oman’s banks are reassessing their strategies and looking for new sources of growth.
Through the global financial crisis, Omani banks have proved remarkably resilient, due to adequate provisioning and low exposure to the toxic assets that caused such turmoil elsewhere…………………………Full Article: Source
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From Khaleejtimes.com: Saudi Arabia has a very promising economy because of its strong oil price, continued public sector investment in infrastructure and diversification, according to a Deutsche Bank report.
“In 2010, we expect the Saudi economy to grow by 3.8 per cent, well ahead of all the other countries in EMEA except Turkey and Qatar,” said the report on the kingdom issued on Tuesday, which also forecast oil price to peak $175 a barrel in 2016…………………………Full Article: Source
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From Reuters: Bahraini bank Al Baraka BARKA.BH said on Sunday it had received subscriptions worth 7.67 billion Syrian pounds ($167 million) for the initial public offer of shares in its Syrian unit, an oversubscription of 3.4 times.
Al Baraka’s IPO is the second by a Gulf Arab bank after Qatar National Bank QNBK.QA (QNB) floated its Syrian unit in July. The bank had offered a 35 percent stake in the unit with a for 1.75 billion Syrian pounds ($38 million)…………………………Full Article: Source
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From Business24-7.ae: Mashreq, the largest private sector bank in Dubai, has restructured its asset book significantly by moving an additional Dh13.7 billion to the Central Bank and increasing loans to government and public sector entities byDh4.25bn, an analysis of the balance sheet said.
Thus the total funds between Central Bank deposits and loans to government and public sector entities have surged by about 250 per cent during the nine months, from Dh12.236bn as of December 31, 2008, to Dh30.239bn as of September end…………………………Full Article: Source
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From Btimes.com.my: Maybank Investment Bank Bhd (MIB) is setting up an Islamic investment bank in Saudi Arabia as part of plans to expand its business in the Middle East, an official said.
The new bank, known as Anfaal Capital, will be a joint venture with ICD (the private-sector arm of Islamic Development Bank), Cepco (a private investor) and International Investment Bank of Bahrain…………………………Full Article: Source
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From Newvision.co.ug: Financial sector regulators are taking lessons in Islamic finance to prepare for the review of existing laws that will pave way for the introduction of Islamic banking in the country.
Islamic banking refers to a system of banking that is consistent with the principles of Islamic law (Shariah)…………………………Full Article: Source
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From Fin24.com: Banks that comply with Islamic Sharia law are thriving despite the global financial crisis, thanks largely to a “conservative approach to risk,” according to a new listing.
The latest research by The Banker magazine reveals that assets held by fully Sharia-compliant banks or the Islamic units of conventional banks rose by 28.6% to $822bn (€550bn) in 2009, up from $639bn (€430bn) in 2008…………………………Full Article: Source
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From Gulfnews.com: In the early stages of its development, sceptics dismissed the DIFC as another mammoth real-estate development. After five years in existence, the epic-scale DIFC project has proven its critics wrong.
The DIFC’s rapid growth over its first five years has propelled Dubai into the league of new financial centres that are challenging established global leaders like London, New York and Hong Kong…………………………Full Article: Source
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From Gulfnews.com: The Dubai International Financial Centre (DIFC) is one of the world’s fastest-growing financial centres, primarily serving the vast region between Western Europe and East Asia.
Its achievments since its launch in 2004 have helped Dubai reinforce its status as one of the key challengers to the world’s top-ranked financial centres. Going forward, it aims to be seen in the same league as New York, London and Hong Kong…………………………Full Article: Source
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From Gulfbase.com: Dubai International Capital LLC put an extra 53 million pounds ($88 million) into Doncasters Group Ltd., a U.K. engineering company it owns, in return for an accord with banks to ease lending covenants, the London-based Times reported, without saying where it got the information.
Lenders had wanted Doncasters, which employs 5,000 people and makes components for Rolls-Royce Group Plc, to get as much as 200 million pounds, the newspaper said…………………………Full Article: Source
Posted on 09 November 2009 by Laxman | Email|Print
From Arabnews.com: Saudi private sector investments in the US last year reached SR1.58 trillion, according to the chairman of the Jeddah Chamber of Commerce and Industry (JCCI).
“The joint ventures between the private sectors in both countries will increase tremendously thanks to the facilities provided by both governments,” Muhammad Abdul Qadir Al-Fadl said at a meeting of the Saudi-American Business Council at the JCCI…………………………Full Article: Source
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From Themedialine.org: A Cayman island based wealth management firm has established a fund that will target female investors in the Gulf. The Mayfair Wealth Management Company has launched the Ameerah, a service offering advice on Sharia (Islamic law) compliant products and investment strategies for female investors in the Gulf.
The estimated wealth controlled by the target group is $40 billion…………………………Full Article: Source
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From Bernama: Malaysia and Turkey have agreed to join forces to develop uniform halal global standards, a move that can pave the way for the Organisation of Islamic Conference (OIC) countries to tap the growing halal market which currently is dominated by non-Muslim countries.
This consensus was reached by trade ministers at the end of the ministrial meeting of the Standing Committee for Economic and Commercial Cooperation (COMCEC) Saturday, Deputy Minister for International Trade and Industry Datuk Mukhriz Mahathir said…………………………Full Article: Source
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