From Hurriyetdailynews.com: Turkey’s first Islamic fund, run by Istanbul-based brokerage Bizim Securities, is seeking to attract more investment from the Persian Gulf with its Shariah-compliant stock index.
The Istanbul Stock Exchange started an Islamic gauge of 30 shares on Jan. 6. Bizim, whose parent company Boydak Holding owns shares in companies including an Islamic bank, is planning to raise 100 million Turkish Liras and through investments set to begin in the second half of 2011, Deputy Chief Executive Avşar Sungurlu said in an interview last week……………………………………….Full Article: Source

From Zawya Dow Jones: Dana Gas, the U.A.E.-based oil and gas production and exploration firm, is looking at options for its $1 billion Islamic bond, or sukuk, due in 2012, and is hiring an advisor on “liability management,” its chief executive officer said Monday.
“The sukuk is a particular focus area for us in 2011,” Ahmed Al Arbeed said on a post-earnings conference call. “We have outlined different options,” Al Arbeed said, declining to provide further detail……………………………………….Full Article: Source

From Gulfnews.com: National Bonds Corporation, a UAE-based Sharia-compliant savings scheme, has achieved a 9 per cent increase in bondholders, bringing the number up to 610,775. By a rough estimate, this could be equivalent to nearly 10 per cent of the UAE’s total population, or about 40 per cent of Dubai’s.
This positive growth was reflected across various segments of the population — the number of women bondholders increased by 11 per cent, men by 12 per cent and expats by 11 per cent……………………………………….Full Article: Source

From Btimes.com.my: Pembinaan BLT Sdn Bhd, a construction company owned by Malaysia’s Ministry of Finance, increased an Islamic bond sale by 10 percent to RM1.1 billion ($359 million) after investors bid for more than it offered.
The sukuk, the first under a 25-year, RM10 billion Islamic Medium Term Note program, were offered in six maturities, Pembinaan said in an e-mailed statement dated Jan. 28……………………………………….Full Article: Source

From Arabnews.com: While Indian blue chip companies such as Tata, Reliance, Ambit and the Bombay Stock Exchange have all entered the Islamic asset management space in the last year or so with the launch of Islamic equity funds and the BSE TASIS Shariah 50 Index, the plight of one local company, purporting to be an Islamic finance and brokerage company but whose operations were deemed wholly unethical, has passed almost unnoticed.
On Jan. 12 the Securities Appellate Tribunal (SAT) of the Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI), the securities regulator, dismissed Appeal No. 146 of 2010 by Parsoli Corporation Ltd. against a ruling by SEBI that Parsoli and its promoters/directors violated several provisions of the ………………………………………Full Article: Source

From Cpifinancial.net: United Arab Bank’s Islamic Credit Card has been recognized by Visa International with an award for successfully introducing the First Vertical Islamic Credit Card in the Middle East.
The award ceremony took place at the Coral Beach Resort in Sharjah where the award was presented to UAB’s Chairman, HE Sheikh Faisal Bin Sultan Bin Salem Al Qassimi by Stuart Isted, Business Leader, from Visa Inc……………………………………….Full Article: Source

From Globalarabnetwork.com: Qatar International Islamic Bank of Qatar (QIIB) discloses the financial statements for the year ended December 31, 2010. The financials revealed a net profit of QR 559 million in 2010 versus QR 511.3 million in 2009. The Earnings per Share (EPS) amounted to QR4.03 in 2010 compared to QR 3.89 in 2009.
The bank also recommended a profit distribution in the form of 37.5% cash dividends; equivalent to QR 3.75/share subject to Qatar Central Bank (QCB) and the bank’s Annual General Meeting (AGM) approval. Qatar International Islamic Bank has come a long way since its establishment as a full-service bank committed to Sharia principles, on January 1, 1991……………………………………….Full Article: Source

From Alrroya.com: Al Ahli Bank of Kuwait is planning to expand in Qatar in 2011 in order to capitalise on opportunities in the Gulf Arab state after its winning bid for the 2022 soccer world cup, a senior executive at the bank said.
ABK’s expansion in Qatar will be “either through acquisition or merging with other banks in Qatar, part of expanding the bank’s operations in the Gulf”, deputy chief general manager Abdullah Al-Sumeit said……………………………………….Full Article: Source

From Thepeninsulaqatar.com: Islamic Holding Group has posted net profits to the tune of QR4m. The earnings per share (EPS) was QR1 and total revenues were QR14.2m. The Board of Directors has decided to recommend to the General Assembly to disburse a cash dividend of 13.34 percent of the paid up capital.
Islamic holding is now working to establish new companies in line with its expansion strategy and plans to contribute effectively to the Qatar economy……………………………………….Full Article: Source

From Tradearabia.com: Arab Bank Group, one of the leading financial groups in the Middle East, has posted a 53 per cent drop in its 2010 net profit. The net profit touched $251 million after it set aside hefty provisions for bad loans for a second consecutive year.
Announcing the results on Monday, the bank said its net pretax and after provisions income amounted to $486.8 million during 2010, while operational revenues amounted to $1.76 billion compared to $1.77 billion for the previous year……………………………………….Full Article: Source

From Khaleejtimes.com: The Central Bank of UAE on Monday asked all financial institutions in the country to immediately report any suspicious money transactions or cases they come across to its Anti-money Laundering and Suspicious Cases Unit (AMLSCU).
After inaugurating a workshop for insurance companies and brokers on Monday, ALMSCU executive director Abdulrahim Mohammed Al Awadi said it was the responsibility of all entities to report such transactions and cases to help the country keep its financial system sound……………………………………….Full Article: Source

From Fa-mag.com: Since the financial crisis, there has been a lot more interest in ethics in finance, and the theory and practice of Islamic finance is attracting attention. The Islamic finance industry has experienced growth, but the industry is still a work in progress.
The modern Islamic finance industry has come a long way since its initial experiments in the 1960s. It now covers banking, capital markets and insurance, and its rapid expansion in different parts of the world is the result of various factors, ranging from petro dollars in the Middle East to its philosophy of inclusion of all interested participants, regardless of religious beliefs……………………………………….Full Article: Source

Dow Jones Indexes, a leading global index provider, today announced it was named “Islamic Index Provider of the Year in Asia” at the Asia Asset Management Awards. This reward recognises Dow Jones Indexes’ existing market share and index launches across the region, as well as its initiatives in Asian emerging markets such as China and India.
“Since the launch of the Dow Jones Islamic Market Indexes, we’ve been committed to providing the investment community with the most comprehensive and reliable index family in the Shari’ah-compliant space,” said Michael A. Petronella, president, Dow Jones Indexes. “Not only have we expanded the family by region, country, size and sector, but we’ve also launched the first index to track Islamic bonds. We were also the first index provider to combine Islamic investment principles with sustainability criteria. Market participants can expect to see continued innovation from Dow Jones Indexes in this area.”
The Dow Jones Islamic Market Indexes were introduced in 1999 as the first indexes intended to measure the global universe of investable equities that pass screens for Shari’ah compliance. With thousands of indexes, the series is the most comprehensive family of Islamic market measures and includes regional, country, and industry indexes - all subsets of the Dow Jones Islamic Market Index. An independent Shari’ah Supervisory Board counsels Dow Jones Indexes on matters related to the compliance of index-eligible companies.