From AFP: Islamic finance, which prohibits charging interest, is set to double in size in five years, but the one-trillion-dollar industry must diversify and regulate to realise its full potential, analysts and economic reports say.
Diversification into new territories is also necessary to reduce the risk of exposure and utilise their full potential, they add……………………………………….Full Article: Source

From Arabnews.com: The possibility of the first sovereign or corporate sukuk origination out of France took a step nearer when the French government announced that it had passed new instructions to facilitate the introduction of sukuk, Ijara, Murabaha and Istisna products in France.
The measures were passed at end July 2010 but were published in the Bulletin Officiel des Impôts n° 78 on Aug. 24. They supersede the instructions published by the French government on Febr. 25, 2009, relating to sukuk and Murabaha transactions only………………………………………..Full Article: Source

From Gulf-daily-news.com: The insurance industry across the region is continuing to grow at pace, with the Sharia-compliant takaful leading the expansion. The GCC takaful market is expected to grow by about 10 per cent a year after very strong growth over the past four to five years, according to Solidarity’s new chief executive officer Ashraf Bseisu.
In Bahrain and across the region, takaful is outstripping growth in conventional insurance which in itself, as a fairly nascent industry, is showing strong expansion……………………………………….Full Article: Source

From Arabnews.com: Malaysian Finance Minister Mohd Najib Abdul Razak, who is also the prime minister, has approved the issuance of the four family Takaful (Islamic insurance) licenses pursuant to the Takaful Act 1984 to joint ventures involving major insurance companies from the US, UK and the Netherlands.
Bank Negara Malaysia, the central bank and insurance regulator, last week issued the licenses to joint ventures to be established by i) American International Assurance Berhad (70 percent) and Alliance Bank Malaysia Berhad (30 percent); ii) AMMB Holdings Berhad (70 percent)……………………………………….Full Article: Source

From Thepeninsulaqatar.com: Malaysians are embracing gold dinars which were introduced last month by the northern state of Kelantan to promote usage of Islamic currency as an alternative to paper money, an official said.
The gold coins and silver dirhams were introduced in early August by the Islamic opposition party PAS which rules Kelantan state to coincide with the start of the Muslim holy fasting month of Ramadan……………………………………….Full Article: Source

From Zawya.com: The Sukuk market continues to show signs of recovery despite the fact that the holy month of Ramadan started in the first, half which usually slows down the pace of issuance. Around USD4.38 billion of Sukuk were issued in August this year, as opposed to USD2.5 billion in August last year, according to data compiled by Zawya’s Sukuk Monitor.
August witnessed the first sukuk to be issued out of Turkey. The USD100 million Kuveyt Turk Katilim Bankasi Sukuk was oversubscribed and listed on London Stock Exchange……………………………………….Full Article: Source

From Bloomberg: Islamic bonds lost to emerging- market debt for the fourth month in August and fund managers say returns won’t catch up until trading increases and Persian Gulf companies restructure their debt.
Shariah-compliant notes rose 1.4 percent last month, down from 2.6 percent in July, according to the HSBC/NASDAQ Dubai US Dollar Sukuk Index……………………………………….Full Article: Source

From Gulf-times.com: Millennium Private Equity, a Dubai government-linked investment company with about $5bn in capital, plans to use Islamic financing for venture capital in Europe after buying the first corporate sukuk in the UK.
Millennium, part-owned by Dubai Islamic Bank, the UAE’ largest Shariah-compliant bank, bought $10mn of four-year convertible notes in July that were sold by International Innovative Technologies, a clean energy company in Gateshead………………………………………..Full Article: Source

From Arabnews.com: One of the potentially most important developments in the global sukuk market this year is the launching in August of a 3-year $100 million Wakala sukuk by Istanbul-based Kuveyt Turk Participation Bank, in which global Islamic banking major, Kuwait Finance House (KFH), has a controlling 62 percent equity stake.
While issuers in Malaysia, Bahrain, the UAE and Saudi Arabia are now familiar with going to the financial markets to raise funds through sukuk for various reasons, the Kuveyt Turk issuance is the first sukuk or Islamic securities - corporate or sovereign - to come from Turkey………………………………………..Full Article: Source

From Opalesque: Sukuk is considered the most sought after financial instruments in the Islamic Finance industry. Western investors view them as debt-like fixed-income instruments, whereas Muslim investors purchase them as it complies with their religious beliefs, but at the same time serve their needs for relatively less-risk investments than equities or real estate.
Sukuk were in the spotlight lately with a high profile defaults that helped to create new perspective on the way these instruments should be legally structured. In this research, three sukuk issuances will be examined: 1) the asset-backed Tamweel RMBS, 2) the asset-based Tamweel Sukuk Limited (”TSL”), 3) the asset-backed issuance of East Cameron Gas (ECG), which has defaulted……………………………………….Full Article: Source

From Thejakartaglobe.com: Currently, Islamic banking is an underperformer in a lucrative market. According to data from the Economist Intelligence Unit and Boston Consulting Group, Indonesia has 119 million potential customers for Islamic banking products, but has reached only 2.2 percent of them.
Malaysia has reached 19.9 percent and Brunei 36 percent of their own markets……………………………………….Full Article: Source

From Theborneopost.com: Malaysia’s largest lender Maybank announced plans to expand its Islamic finance business in Singapore and Indonesia to tap the markets’ demand for such services.
In Indonesia, home to the world’s largest Muslim population, the bank will open at least one new branch a week to increase its network from 290 to 450 eventually, Maybank chief executive Datuk Seri Abdul Wahid Omar said……………………………………….Full Article: Source

From Bloomberg: Kuwait Finance House (Malaysia) Bhd., a unit of Kuwait’s biggest Islamic bank, is in talks with institutions in Japan to form “strategic alliances” for Islamic banking deals.
Kuwait Finance is interested in buying stakes in Islamic banks in Hong Kong, Thailand, India and Indonesia……………………………………….Full Article: Source

From Cpifinancial.net: Qatar Islamic BankDubai (QIB), Al-Futtaim, and Aqar Real Estate Investment have signed a joint venture agreement to construct a state-of-the-art entertainment and retail complex in Doha
Claimed as the country’s largest multipurpose complex, it will be located on the northern highway linking Doha International Airport with the proposed Bahrain Causeway and will include a full retail centre, an entertainment park and two hotels………………………………………..Full Article: Source

From WSJ: Afghans continued pulling money from their country’s largest bank Saturday as Afghan central bank officials, aided by American experts, explored ways to stabilize the ailing lender with deep ties to President Hamid Karzai’s administration, weighing the possibility of an Afghan-financed bailout.
Averting the failure of Kabul Bank has become a top priority for U.S. and Afghan officials, who fear the possible political and economic crisis that could result……………………………………….Full Article: Source

From Cpifinancial.net: International law firm Pinsent Masons has strengthened its banking and finance service offering in the Gulf by bringing in Amir Ahmad. Ahmad, who will be based in Pinsent Masons’ Dubai office, will report to Al-Harith Sinclair who heads the firms’ new Islamic Finance practice.
Together they will work on three key areas: growing the firm’s Islamic finance practice in London and the Gulf; Gulf financial regulatory matters, and Gulf project finance and other finance matters……………………………………….Full Article: Source

From Cpifinancial.net: The Murabaha financing (cost plus financing) facility for PT Krakatau Steel, the Indonesian state owned company and the largest integrated steel manufacturer in Indonesia, is solely funded by HSBC has been designed to finance Krakatau Steel’s raw material purchasing.
Rajeev Babel, Head of Global Banking HSBC Indonesia said, “We are delighted to announce this Shari’ah financing facility with Krakatau Steel, which is one of our most valued clients in Indonesia……………………………………….Full Article: Source

From Cpifinancial.net: Qatar Islamic Bank’s (QIB) subsidiary, European Finance House (EFH) has recently rebranded as QIB UK to unify the brand across local and international markets.
The primary motivation behind the rebranding was to bring EFH under the umbrella of QIB’s established identity as the world’s fourth largest Islamic bank in terms of assets……………………………………….Full Article: Source

From Ameinfo.com: Al Salam Bank-Bahrain, a leading Islamic financial institution, has recently provided £38M in a unique Shari’a compliant mezzanine facility to refinance a landmark commercial Property located in the heart of Canary Wharf, the financial district of London.
The property is leased in its entirety to a leading, multinational financial institution with A+ long term rating with stable outlook form Standard & Poor’s. The lease, which carries an unexpired term of 17.5 years, is on a fully repairing and insuring basis……………………………………….Full Article: Source

From Bloomberg: Nigeria’s stock exchange is seeking foreign investors as part of its plan to demutualize the bourse and introduce new products including Islamic investments, said Arunma Oteh, head of the nation’s securities regulator.
The Nigerian Stock Exchange is in the “early stages” of demutualization and will probably hire a new chief executive officer by the end of this year, Oteh, director general of the country’s Securities and Exchange Commission, said………………………………………Full Article: Source

From Poten.com: Given Singapore’s rich social stew of cultures and reputation as a vibrant financial services centre, it is perhaps not surprising that Islamic banking and finance has been offered in Singapore since the 1990s.
However, the development of Islamic finance has gathered pace in recent years, as more institutions offering Islamic financial services have entered the fray and introduced a wider range of Islamic products and services……………………………………….Full Article: Source

From Poten.com: According to Standard & Poor’s, Southeast Asian countries will fuel the Islamic finance advance in Asia, as Southeast Asia drives demand for Shari’ah-compliant financial products. And in Southeast Asia itself, it seems that Malaysia is fuelling growth in Islamic finance amongst its neighbours.
Inspired by Malaysia’s success, several Southeast Asian countries are upping their ante to put themselves on the Islamic finance map……………………………………….Full Article: Source