Posted on 30 September 2010 by Laxman | Email|Print
From Reuters: Islamic finance is toughening supervision of its powerful religious advisers as shareholders worldwide demand increasing accountability from directors, but key reforms may do little to boost independence and transparency.
Islamic banking is overhauling rules that govern the conduct of its influential sharia advisers, with competition for investor dollars and a growing market putting pressure on the once-arcane industry to adopt clearer, more uniform guidelines……………………………………….Full Article: Source
Posted on 30 September 2010 by Laxman | Email|Print
From Maktoob.com: Shariah advisers shouldn’t be looked on as only the “police” to the Islamic finance but rather the adviser, the caretaker, the guide and the institution that may shape the direction of the Islamic finance industry.
They shouldn’t only be the “police” who always look for mistakes and “offences” committed by the industry but should always be able to provide the best advice and steer the way for better operation of the industry……………………………………….Full Article: Source
Posted on 30 September 2010 by Laxman | Email|Print
From Themalaysianinsider.com: The idea that syariah advisors are subject to supervision is not exactly something new. At the international level, for example, the Auditing and Accounting Organisation of Islamic Financial Institutions (AAOIFI) in Bahrain already publishes a syariah standard on stipulations and ethics of fatwa (Islamic law ruling) for Islamic financial institutions as well as several governance standards on the role of syariah supervisory boards (currently being reviewed by AAOIFI).
The Islamic Fiqh Academy of the Organisation for Islamic Conference in Saudi Arabia in April 2009 issued a resolution on syariah supervision for Islamic banks, while the Islamic Financial Services Board in Malaysia in December 2009 published a standard on syariah governance systems for Islamic financial institutions……………………………………….Full Article: Source
Posted on 30 September 2010 by Laxman | Email|Print
From Reuters: Sharia advisers are the gatekeepers of the $1 trillion Islamic finance industry, issuing rulings on whether financial products satisfy the religion’s requirements.
As the industry grows, there are mounting calls to streamline and boost the supervision of sharia scholars, who are now regulated by a patchwork of national authorities and standard-setting bodies……………………………………….Full Article: Source
Posted on 30 September 2010 by Laxman | Email|Print
From Thejakartaglobe.com: Islamic finance is toughening supervision of its powerful religious advisers as shareholders worldwide demand increasing accountability from directors, but key reforms may do little to boost transparency.
Competition for investor dollars and a growing market is putting pressure on the once-arcane industry to adopt clearer, more uniform guidelines……………………………………….Full Article: Source
Posted on 30 September 2010 by Laxman | Email|Print
From Zawya.com: Afghanistan seems like a country which is tailor-made for Islamic finance, but it still doesn’t have a single Islamic bank. However, moves are afoot to bring it to the country. Mike Gallagher reports from Kabul on efforts to turn the economy around using Islamic finance.
Afghanistan has rarely been out of the news over the past nine years, as around 40 countries have been endeavouring to turn the country from one of the poorest (with a per capita GDP of around $1000) to something more stable and prosperous. The economy, after years of desperate hardship has been growing at around 10 per cent a year, admittedly from a very low base……………………………………….Full Article: Source
Posted on 30 September 2010 by Laxman | Email|Print
From Bloomberg: Asian issuers plan to sell $2.1 billion of Islamic debt in the fourth quarter, about 60 percent less than those announced in the Persian Gulf, where companies are seeking funds after Dubai World’s debt restructuring.
The dearth of issuance from Asia signals the Persian Gulf will overtake the region for the first time since the last quarter of 2009 with about $5.5 billion in offerings in the final three months, data compiled by Bloomberg show……………………………………….Full Article: Source
Posted on 30 September 2010 by Laxman | Email|Print
From Thestar.com.my: Malaysia Debt Ventures Bhd, a venture capital firm owned by the Finance Ministry, plans to issue about RM500mil of Islamic bonds in its third sukuk sale next year to fund investments, chief executive officer Md Zubir Ansori Yahaya said.
The company, which spends RM750mil on information technology and bio-technology projects annually, raised RM500mil of sukuk earlier this month, he said in an interview at a venture capital conference here on Tuesday……………………………………….Full Article: Source
Posted on 30 September 2010 by Laxman | Email|Print
From Bloomberg: Indonesia, the world’s most- populous Muslim nation, is reviving sales of Islamic bonds two months after consecutive auctions fell short of target because of concern over insufficient trading volume.
The Finance Ministry said this week it will offer 1 trillion rupiah ($112 million) of sukuk on Oct. 5, with maturities of five years to 20 years and coupons ranging from 8.8 percent to 10.25 percent……………………………………….Full Article: Source
Posted on 30 September 2010 by Laxman | Email|Print
From Btimes.com.my: Borcos Shipping Sdn Bhd, Malaysia’s second-largest provider of offshore support vessels, had the A1 rating on RM160 million of Islamic medium-term notes placed on rating watch with a negative outlook at RAM Rating Services Sdn Bhd.
This reflects a decline in daily charter rates and low utilization of its offshore support vessels, RAM said in a report today. A1 is RAM’s fifth-highest investment grade……………………………………….Full Article: Source
Posted on 30 September 2010 by Laxman | Email|Print
From Reuters: Dubai developer Emaar Properties said on Wednesday it would issue $450 million in convertible bonds, and that it may have to write off loans related to troubled Islamic mortgage provider Amlak.
Emaar said in a statement the five-year note, which would carry a coupon of 7.5 percent, was increased from an initial $375 million on strong demand, and could be further raised up to $500 million……………………………………….Full Article: Source
Posted on 30 September 2010 by Laxman | Email|Print
From Gulfnews.com: Emaar Properties, the UAE’s biggest listed real estate developer, said on Wednesday that the company’s board has agreed to issue convertible bonds worth $375 million (Dh1.37 billion).
In a filing to the Dubai Financial Market on Wednesday, the company said it had established a wholly owned subsidiary, Pyrus Limited, in Cayman Islands, that would issue a $375 million bond with the option to increase the size of the issue by another $125 million……………………………………….Full Article: Source
Posted on 30 September 2010 by Laxman | Email|Print
From Arabianbusiness.com: Qatar Islamic Bank may raise as much as $750 million by selling five year Islamic bonds that may be priced to yield 262.5 basis points above similar maturity midswap, four bankers familiar with the transaction said.
The bankers declined to be identified because the deal hasn’t been completed……………………………………….Full Article: Source
Posted on 30 September 2010 by Laxman | Email|Print
From Zawya Dow Jones: Australian investment manager Hyperion Asset Management has launched an Islamic equity fund that will initially target Middle East investors seeking to benefit from Australia’s economic growth potential.
“The fund will invest in listed Australian equities. We hope to have initial commitments in place by the end of October for the first close, which should be in excess of $40 million,” said Douglas Clark Johnson, chief executive officer at Codexa Capital, which consulted on fund structuring and marketing, and represents the product in selected markets……………………………………….Full Article: Source
Posted on 30 September 2010 by Laxman | Email|Print
From Gulf-daily-news.com: The Central Bank of Bahrain (CBB) has authorised formation and marketing of the Hyperion Australian Equity Islamic Fund, the first Sharia-compliant offshore fund comprised of the country’s stocks.
Investment manager for the fund is Hyperion Asset Management, a Brisbane-based, growth-style manager whose award-winning core investment team has worked together since 1997……………………………………….Full Article: Source
Posted on 30 September 2010 by Laxman | Email|Print
From RTTNews: Family Shariah Fund Ltd, in its unaudited interim half year results for the six month period ended 30 June 2010, net loss widened to US$1.03 million or US$0.03 per share, from US$212 thousand or US$0.01 per share in the year ago period.
Total expenses declined to US$671 thousand, from US$778 thousand in the prior year period……………………………………….Full Article: Source
Posted on 30 September 2010 by Laxman | Email|Print
From Btimes.com.my: Top lender Malayan Banking Bhd (Maybank) has obtained Indonesian authorities’ approval to convert its unit PT Bank Maybank Indocorp into a full-fledged Islamic bank, its chief said.
The move allows Maybank to step up its Islamic banking activities in the world’s most populous Muslim nation. It also fits in with the group’s plan of becoming the largest Islamic bank in Asean by 2015, president and chief executive officer Datuk Seri Abdul Wahid Omar said……………………………………….Full Article: Source
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From Alarabiya.net: Qatar’s central bank’s new rules on Islamic lending released on August 29 are set to be to the advantage of “true” Islamic banks in the long-run.
The new regulations prohibit conventional banks from allocating more than 10 percent of issued capital to Islamic banking operations and disallow them from opening additional branches for Islamic banking……………………………………….Full Article: Source
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From Arabnews.com: A group of Indian expatriate workers met with the Minister of Overseas Indians’ Affairs, Vayalar Ravi, here recently and presented a memorandum seeking his support to introduce interest-free banking and financial services in India.
“Minister Ravi offered his support for and commitment to any Interest-free financing projects in India for expatriate Indians which comes under the purview of the Indian constitution,” said Abdul Aziz V.K. of Al-Hayat School who is also a member of the group……………………………………….Full Article: Source
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From Ameinfo.com: Al khaliji, the next generation bank, has introduced Qatar’s first fee-free credit cards offering 2% cashback on all purchases and a market leading package of financial benefits and superior protection for its valued customers.
In addition to 2% Cashback on purchases, the new Al khaliji Classic and Platinum Visa credit cards guarantee 0% commission on overseas transactions, no annual fee, no salary transfer, in addition to a highly competitive interest rate and market leading Anti-Fraud monitoring to protect purchases made in shops and online……………………………………….Full Article: Source
Posted on 30 September 2010 by Laxman | Email|Print
From Emirates247.com: With Dubai Islamic Bank (DIB) taking over troubled Islamic mortgage lender Tamweel, the market is rife with rumours that Emaar Properties, which is holding its board meeting today, will decide to offload its stake in Amlak Finance, the other non-bank mortgage lender in Dubai.
The Dubai-based Emaar Properties is the largest shareholder in Amlak, holding 45 per cent of its shares. No other single shareholder owns more than 5 per cent of Amlak’s shares……………………………………….Full Article: Source
Posted on 30 September 2010 by Laxman | Email|Print
From Zawya.com: Almost a year ago, the emirate of Dubai was written off the books by some media. When real estate developer Nakheel found itself unable to pay off a US$3.52 billion Islamic bond (Sukuk) in November 2009, the sheikhdom suddenly was declared a place where dreams had turned to dust. Only a last -minute US$10 billon credit guarantee from neighboring emirate Abu Dhabi saved Dubai from defaulting.
It might be too early to declare victory, but September 2010 definitely marks - at the very least - a much needed stabilization for Dubai……………………………………….Full Article: Source
Posted on 30 September 2010 by Laxman | Email|Print
Some of the world’s most outstanding individuals in Islamic finance are now being considered for The Royal Award for Islamic Finance. Unlike commercial awards which are deal-based, this Award focuses on an individual’s record of achievement and outstanding contribution towards the advancement of Islamic finance globally.
The 30 nominees represent the diversity and global acceptance of Islamic finance – from across all regions of the world, including the Middle East, Europe, South East Asia, Africa and Australia. This pool of influential drivers of global Islamic finance also includes non-Muslims and both genders. Nominations have come from every sector of the industry including Shariah, academia, industry practitioners, Islamic finance institutions, research institutions, Government agencies and NGOs……………………………………….Full Press Release: Source
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