From Reuters: Africa’s Islamic finance industry needs to overcome negative perceptions among non-Muslims to successfully expand into predominantly Christian sub-Saharan Africa, an industry leader said on Tuesday.
Northern Africa is largely Muslim and countries such as Egypt and Sudan have offered Islamic banking for decades. Now some lenders are looking to expand into sub-Saharan nations, such as Uganda which is 80 percent Christian……………………………………..Full Article: Source

From Business24-7.ae: Islamic bond issuance in 2009 increased to $23.3 billion. If you kept stacking dollar bills vertically, one on top of another, a trillion dollars would reach the moon – that is about the current size of Islamic finance.
However huge it may sound though, the industry is just one per cent of the total global finance market despite the 10 to 15 per cent growth it has enjoyed in the past few decades……………………………………..Full Article: Source

From Reuters: Lebanon does not plan to issue a sovereign Islamic bond, or sukuk, in order not to attract additional liquidity to its banking system which is awash with cash, a central bank official said on Tuesday.
The emerging market for sukuk has been lacking sovereign issues to provide a pricing benchmark for corporate issuers and boost liquidity in a market that sees little secondary trading……………………………………..Full Article: Source

From Business24-7.ae: The Dubai International Financial Centre (DIFC) has started to create ‘Dubai docs’, a standardised document for anyone who wishes to list or raise a sukuk from the centre, a move that is aimed to reduce the cost of sukuk documentation.
The centre will use the International Finance Corporation (IFC) sukuk listed on Nasdaq Dubai to set a benchmark for new issuances. The $100 million (Dh367.3m) sukuk, the first Islamic bond by the World Bank in the region, is a dollar-dominated non-amortising issue with a five-year maturity……………………………………..Full Article: Source

From Gulfjobsmarket.com: Select sukuks were suspended from the Nasdaq Dubai yesterday after it was revealed that no financial statements or annual reports have been submitted to the exchange for 2009 accounting period.
Among those that have now been suspended are Nakheel Development 2, IIG Funding, Nakheel Development 3, Dubai Holding Commercial Operations MTN and TID Global sukuk……………………………………..Full Article: Source

From Reuters: Indonesia’s finance ministry aims to raise 1 trillion rupiah ($110.8 million) from sales of Islamic debt, or sukuk, via an auction on May 11, the ministry said in a statement on Tuesday.…………………………………….Full Article: Source

From Allafrica.com: The Central Bank is working on a framework that will eventually lead to the flotation of sharia - compliant bonds and treasury bills in the local money market.
The move to entrench Sukuk bonds and bills in the law is seen as a push by CBK to tap the increasing amount of cash flowing into Africa from the Gulf region……………………………………..Full Article: Source

From Business24-7.ae: Ratings agency Standard & Poor’s (S&P) yesterday said that for the first time it assigned a rating to a Shariah fund, in a bid to boost transparency in an industry that has come under fire after some recent defaults.
S&P said it assigned a “AAf/S1+” fund credit and volatility rating to a Luxembourg-based, US dollar-dominated fund managed by European Finance House, a subsidiary of Qatar Islamic Bank, one of the Gulf’s biggest banks by market value. …………………………………….Full Article: Source

From Globalarabnetwork.com: The economic boom in the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) region has fuelled the emergence of Islamic finance in the international market in the past decade. Revenue growth in this region has particularly benefited the asset management sector, as Standard & Poor’s noted in a report.
The Middle East is by far the largest market for Sharia-compliant funds, but conventional players in Europe, South Africa, and the U.S. have also launched a number of funds that comply with Sharia law during past years, enhancing their product range to meet the specific requirements of Islamic investors seeking to invest in this asset class……………………………………..Full Article: Source

From Newsabahtimes.com.my: Islamic finance needs to establish an effective system-wide crisis management and harmonised regulatory framework, in order to keep up with new challenges in the industry.
In making the call, the Raja Muda Perak Raja Dr Nazrin Shah said Islamic finance, had very unique characteristics and risks that also required unique risk management solutions……………………………………..Full Article: Source

From Btimes.com.my: Islamic banks and financial institutions must play a role in the industrialisation of Muslim countries to be able to withstand future challenges in the global financial system.
In making the call, Former Prime Minister Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad said banks’ role in the industrialisation of developed countries in Europe and East Asia cannot be understated……………………………………..Full Article: Source

From Bernama: The sustained and largely uninterrupted expansion of the global growth in Islamic finance has drawn significant international interest, not only from Muslim countries but also from non-Muslim communities, Bank Negara Malaysia Governor Tan Sri Dr Zeti Akhtar Aziz.
She said Islamic finance continued to demonstrate its resilience against the background of the current challenging international financial environment……………………………………..Full Article: Source

From Cpifinancial.net: Hawkamah, The Institute for Corporate Governance in cooperation with the American Bar Association International Law Section and it’s Islamic Finance Committee were joint organizers of the forum entitled ‘Taking Stock and Moving Forward: The State of Islamic Finance and Prospects for the Future’ at the Dubai International Financial Centre (DIFC).……………………………………Full Article: Source

From Africanmanager.com: Stanbic Bank Tanzania, a member of the Standard Bank Group, the leading emerging markets bank with the largest presence in Africa, has launched Shariah banking products in Tanzania.
Shariah banking is a system of banking that is consistent with the principles of Islamic law……………………………………..Full Article: Source

From Eyeofdubai.com: Sharjah Islamic Bank (SIB) has announced the appointment of Mr Rahma Mohammed Al Shamsi as Head of the banks Corporate Banking Group. In his new position, Al Shamsi will oversee all the corporate banking services and products, and develop these services in compliance with Sharia principles, and the standards adopted by the bank.
The new appointment comes in line with SIBs drive for Emiratisation as strategy outlined by the Board of Directors……………………………………..Full Article: Source

From Btimes.com.my: Silk Holdings Bhd has secured a loan facility worth RM85.52 million from Maybank Islamic Bhd. The eight-year Musharakah Mutanaqisah term-financing facility was given to its 70 per cent-owned subsidiary Jasa Merin (Malaysia) Sdn Bhd held through wholly-owned AQL Aman Sdn Bhd.
The loan will be used to part finance the construction of two units of anchor handling tug supply vessels……………………………………..Full Article: Source

From Tradearabia.com: Bahraini Islamic lender Al Baraka expects to buy a stake in Malaysian Bank Muamalat by year-end, its chief executive said on Tuesday, as it seeks growth outside of its home market.
‘There is a correspondence between us and them. We have stated our intention,’ Adnan Yousif said on the sidelines of a conference, adding he expected a deal to close this year……………………………………..Full Article: Source

From Cpifinancial.net: The world’s first Islamic bank and the largest Shari’ah-compliant financial institution in the UAE, Dubai Islamic Bank (DIB) recently celebrated the 35th anniversary of its establishment at a special one-day event, which was attended by more than 1,300 bank staff from across the country.
The event, which was held in Dubai, was led by His Excellency Mohammed Ibrahim Al Shaibani, Director-General of His Highness The Ruler’s Court of Dubai and Chairman of Dubai Islamic Bank, and Abdulla Al Hamli, the bank’s Chief Executive Officer……………………………………..Full Article: Source

From Arabnews.com: Saudi Arabia will lead the way in the Gulf mergers and acquisitions (M&A) market with projections reaching $25 billion by the year-end, according to experts.
The findings of a survey conducted by Zawya and M: Communications revealed on Tuesday were based on the interviews of 27 leading global, regional and local financial institutions across the Gulf Cooperation Council states……………………………………..Full Article: Source

From Insurancenewsnet.com: The unique mutuality principle of takaful, or Islam-based insurance, is the key to promoting new business in light of increasing competition from traditional insurers and a difficult operational environment, according to an Islamic financial services consultant.
In this specialized market segment, customers need to know more about the mutuality concept rather than price, said Ashar Nazim, director of Islamic financial services group at consultancy Ernst & Young. Takaful operators are easily hung up in the competition for price and market share, though the most valuable part of this insurance model is overlooked……………………………………..Full Article: Source

From Thenews.com.pk: The sponsor of Pak-Qatar Takaful has planned an investment of around Rs500 million in Pakistan for expanding its family Takaful business and other related projects, said P. Ahmed, Chief Executive Officer, Pak-Qatar Family Takaful Limited.
“Considering potential growth in Takaful business the board of directors of the company decided to make investment during the current year,” he said. The company would invest further Rs500 million in family Takaful and other related projects for expansion, Ahmed said……………………………………..Full Article: Source

From Gulfjobsmarket.com: Following the success of last year’s first conference, Fleming Gulf have announced the second gathering of the world’s Islamic bankers. The conference, which heralds the consolidated growth of the Islamic banking market, will be held in Dubai between 25 – 27th October 2010.
Islamic banking operates according to the principles of Sharia law and prohibits the charging of interest. It is becoming big news not only in the Gulf, but across the Islamic world……………………………………..Full Article: Source