Qatar’s Almana Group has priced its five-year $215 million floating rate trust certificate sukuk at 3-month US Dollar Libor plus 450 basis points with an issue price at par.
The sukuk, issued by Almana Sukuk 2011 Limited, a limited liability special purpose company incorporated in the Cayman Islands is guaranteed by Almana Group, Almana Motors Company, Almana Trading Company, United Cars Almana and Almana Maples……………………………………….Full Article: Source

KFH Researches monthly report about the developments in the global sukuk market revealed that the issuance of sukuk in global markets increased during the aforementioned period by 34.7%. The report noted that the value of sukuk issued during the First Half is USD 47 billion, which is more than last year’s record USD 45 billion.
The flurry of sukuk during June was topped off by a USD2bln issuance by the Government of Malaysia to make the month the second highest in issuance to date. The Malaysian government’s five and ten year sukuk Wakalah was oversubscribed 4.5x, attracting an excess of USD9bln……………………………………….Full Article: Source

Malaysia will issue a license for an Islamic “mega bank” in the third quarter of this year to help mobilize funds for businesses around the world, the country’s central bank governor said.
The Southeast Asian nation will also start a cross-border clearance platform for Shariah-compliant bonds, or sukuk, around the same time, Bank Negara Malaysia Governor Zeti Akhtar Aziz said in an interview in Jakarta yesterday. The initiatives are part of a plan to help fill gaps in the $1 trillion global Islamic finance industry……………………………………….Full Article: Source

Kuwait Finance House (KFH) , the country’s biggest Islamic lender, reported a 43 percent fall in the second-quarter net profit, missing analysts forecasts for the fourth consecutive quarter.
Net profit in the three months to June 30 came in at 22.8 million dinars ($83.2 million), compared with 39.9 million dinars in the same period last year, KFH said in a statement on the Kuwaiti bourse website on Monday. Two analysts polled by Reuters expected the company to earn net profit of 29.1 million dinars and 29.8 million dinars for the second quarter……………………………………….Full Article: Source

Director General of the Infrastructure Concession Regulatory Commission, Engr. Mansur Ahmed, calls for regulatory framework for Sukuk in Nigeria.
“The critical imperatives for the successful issuance of Islamic bonds (otherwise known as Sukuk) in Nigeria will include the right regulatory and taxation framework, transparent transaction structure, credit rating, marketing, risk and mitigation measures, appropriate technical capacity and guarantees,” the ICRC Director General said……………………………………….Full Article: Source

Non-Interest (Islamic) banking may be seen as a recent financial system improvised as alternative to tackle the turmoil inherent in conventional banking system.
However, there were earliest references which suggest that Islamic banking came into the picture first in Egypt in 1963. This pioneering effort was achieved by Ahmad El Najjar who brought the idea into existence, whose key principle was profit sharing (non-interest based philosophy of Shariah)……………………………………….Full Article: Source

Tons of written and verbal commentaries on the new (old) CBN’s policy initiative on Islamic Banking could very well fill a banking hall of a bank yet to be licensed.
Paradoxically most commentators so far are not disinterested commentators. Sorry, the commentators are not interest-free as the principle of Islamic banking envisages……………………………………….Full Article: Source

The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) recently released the revised guidelines for the operation of non-interest banking in the country. In recent times, Nigeria’s banking system has steadily evolved, following wide reaching reforms embarked upon by the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN).
At the inception of these reforms, the policy thrust was not only targeted at growing the banks and positioning them to play pivotal roles in driving development in other sectors of the economy, it was also directed at inducing improvement in their operational efficiency……………………………………….Full Article: Source

Delta State Controller of the Central Bank of Nigeria, CBN, Mrs. Elizabeth Agu, weekend, narrowly escaped the wrath of some youth corps members in the state, when she delivered a paper by the CBN Governor, Sanusi Lamido Sanusi, which touched on the controversial Islamic banking system soon to be introduced in the country.
Agu who presented the paper ‘Youth Empowerment as a tool for ustainable Development: The Central Bank of Nigeria Interventions’ at the NYSC Orientation Camp at Issele-Uku in Delta State, was only able to douse the tension, when he explained that Islamic bank had nothing to do with religion, following a question by some corps members, who had asked why Islamic banking should be allowed in a secular country like Nigeria……………………………………….Full Article: Source

Without mincing words, the current hues and cries over the introduction of Islamic banking in Nigeria, are needless. If there is any society wherein mutual understanding is required, our country appears to me, to be just that. In fact, the unfortunate volatility of our inter-religious relations, being adduced by many as a negating factor, is, in my opinion, the foremost necessity for caution and restraint.
A Yoruba adage aptly summarizes my drift when it admonishes every soul thus:………………………………………Full Article: Source

Islamic banking is poised to become a key fixture of Oman’s financial sector, following the recent announcement that His Majesty Sultan Qaboos bin Said has approved the formation of Oman’s first Islamic bank. Last month’s Client Alert provided an introduction to the religious, philosophical and economic principles that underpin Islamic finance.
This month, we present an overview of some of the classic Islamic banking structures that are commonly used in jurisdictions where Islamic finance is already well established……………………………………….Full Article: Source

Banking with an Islamic covered card, instead of a credit card, offers peace of mind and has become popular among Muslims and Non-Muslims alike. But the UAE’s Shari’ah-retail banking landscape also shows that the debris of the global financial crisis has not yet been swept away.
In the first-half of 2011, the UAE’s Islamic retail banks have been busy in promoting new products and services. In January, Noor Islamic Bank opened its largest branch for Islamic insurances Noor Takaful……………………………………….Full Article: Source

Major shareholders of Indonesia’s second-largest Shari’ah lender, Bank Muamalat, have decided to postpone a plan to sell down their stake in the bank, in part due to a disagreement over pricing, according to an unnamed bank executive.
Muamalat’s top three shareholders, Islamic Development Bank, Boubyan Bank Kuwait and Saudi Arabia’s Atwill Holdings, who collectively control 75.7 per cent of the bank, were trying to offload some of their holdings……………………………………….Full Article: Source

Public Bank’s wholly-owned subsidiary, Public Mutual is launching two new Islamic funds, Public Islamic Treasures Growth Fund (PITGF) and Public Sukuk Fund (PSKF) on 19 July 2011. PITGF is an Islamic equity fund that seeks to achieve capital growth over the medium- to long-term period by investing primarily in small and medium sized companies, which comply with Shariah principles.
Meanwhile, PSKF is an Islamic bond fund that seeks to provide annual income through investments in sukuk and Islamic money market instruments……………………………………….Full Article: Source

What does it take to bring 7 million American Muslims Islamic finance? Maybe training only 100 prominent religious leaders as a small first step. That is what the founding members of the American Islamic Finance (AIF) Project have now successfully accomplished. Jointly founded by Ethica Institute of Islamic Finance, Guidance Financial, and the Islamic Society of North America, the AIF Project seeks to promote standards-based Islamic finance among Muslim communities in North America.
The training program began with an inaugural address by Mufti Taqi Usmani, chairman of AAOIFI (Accounting and Auditing Organization for Islamic Financial Institutions), the world’s leading standard-setting body. Ethica’s spokesperson said, “Muslims in America rely on their imams for all kinds of information. By giving these community leaders direct training in the practical application of Islamic finance, Ethica now equips them with an understanding of global standards.” (Press Release)

The favourable reception by the international market to Malaysia’s recent Wakala global sukuk indicates significant potential for Shariah-compliant instruments, said Bank Negara Malaysia Governor, Tan Sri Dr Zeti Akhtar Aziz.
“The RM2 billion sukuk was huge and oversubscribed 4.5 times. There is significant demand and potential for Shariah-compliant instruments,” she said. She also said as the Wakala was large, the Malaysian government will not look at global sukuk for the time being but issue domestic ringgit denominated sukuk……………………………………….Full Article: Source