The Islamic investment sector can widen its customer base by adopting a socially responsible model, according to industry experts, but distribution channels, a sophisticated investor base and incentive schemes need to be enhanced first.
The links between Islamic finance and socially responsible investments (SRI) are not new, but the former needs a similar transformation which brought SRI into the mainstream………………………………………..Full Article: Source

According to industry sources, Saeid Hamedanchi, Chief Executive Officer of ShariahShares,is preparing the launch a family of Shariah compliant ETFs on the US and European Exchanges. Founded in 2010, ShariahShares is a California based provider of Islamic Shariah compliant investment products and solutions.
In addition to its core business of ETFs, ShariahShares plans to develop its capabilities to offer Shariah compliant investment management to managed accounts………………………………………..Full Article: Source

After a long period of relatively minimal bond market activity, the period of the global economic crisis has seen bonds and sukuk increasingly claim their place as the third pillar of the traditionally heavily bank-dominated GCC financial markets.
While much of the issuance, especially in the financial services area, has been conventional, the regional sukuk markets have made particularly impressive progress as an alternative funding sources at a time when bank financing has been relatively scarce. ……………………………………….Full Article: Source

The Dubai government will partly guarantee the $1 billion loan which DIFC Investments will use to repay its $1.25 billion Islamic bond maturing in June, two sources said on Thursday.
The government support consists of a shortfall guarantee of up to $470 million, one of the sources familiar with the matter said, speaking on condition of anonymity as the information is not public………………………………………..Full Article: Source

Baker & McKenzie has advised Banque Saudi Fransi (BSF) on a $2bn (£1.3bn) deal which marks the first-ever London-listed sukuk programme by a Saudi bank.
The Islamic finance deal also handed roles to magic circle firm Allen & Overy (A&O), advising opposite Bakers, and offshore firm Maples & Calder………………………………………..Full Article: Source

The Asian Development Bank (ADB) has participated in its first shariah-compliant project financing for two wind farms in Sindh province, Pakistan. But the use of Islamic financial instruments was not ADB’s first option.
Though ADB has previously provided conventional debt alongside Islamic finance, this is the first time that all aspects have been shariah-compliant………………………………………..Full Article: Source

Islamic Cooperation for the Development of Private Sector (ICD), a private sector arm of the Islamic Development Bank Group (IDB), and Aktif Bank recently signed an agreement. ICD’s CEO Khaled Mohammed Al-Aboodi and Aktif Bank’s CEO Onder Halisdemir inked the deal.
As per the agreement, ICD and Aktif Bank will join forces to cooperate in various areas including financing of SMEs and the private sector’s projects and investments, acting as an intermediary to establish new enterprises, encouraging the growth of existing companies and also supporting the projects which may create jobs………………………………………..Full Article: Source

The bank’s Chairman, Datuk Kamaruddin Taib, revealed that he will be flying to Shanghai tomorrow (1 June) to take a closer look at a prospect in China’s most populous city.
“The good thing about being in Malaysia is that you are not limited to just Malaysia, we are an international Islamic bank, so we are more interested in the cross border,” Taib said………………………………………..Full Article: Source

Mobile Telecommunications Co. of Saudi Arabia, known as Zain Saudi, hired four banks for a five- year $2.5 billion loan to refinance its Islamic facility that matures in July, according to two bankers familiar with the matter.
The company, 25 percent-owned by Mobile Telecommunications Co. of Kuwait, mandated Al Rajhi Bank (RJHI), Banque Saudi Fransi (BSFR), Arab National Bank (ARNB) and Standard Chartered Plc (STAN) for the loan, the bankers said, who declined to be identified because the talks are private………………………………………..Full Article: Source

It looks like the country’s top two banks, Malayan Banking Bhd (Maybank) and CIMB Group, can heave a sigh of relief as they won’t be subject to Indonesia’s proposed new rules on bank ownership.
Having to sell down their stakes would have hurt their prospects in the world’s most populous Muslim nation, where the banking penetration rates - particularly Islamic banking - are very low and the sector offers high growth potential………………………………………..Full Article: Source

Abu Dhabi Islamic Bank (ADIB), the second-largest Islamic lender in the UAE, opened its first branch in London’s swanky Knightsbridge yesterday, targeting wealthy Gulf clients in Britain.
Abu Dhabi ruling family member Shaikh Khalid bin Zayed Al Nahyan joined Prince Andrew, the Duke of York, to open the office at One Hyde Park, the £1 billion ($1.5bn) Candy and Candy development near the Harrods store………………………………………..Full Article: Source

Risk management has become a top priority for bank boards in the wake of the ongoing financial crisis. Most world markets and sectors continue to be adversely impacted, including the Islamic finance sector, which is facing regulatory and practice-related reforms.
Around 40 members and students of the Chartered Institute for Securities and Investment in Bahrain, many of whom have completed the Central Bank of Bahrain mandatory qualification entitled Financial Advice Programme, attended a risk seminar held jointly with the Bahrain Institute of Banking and Finance (BIBF)………………………………………..Full Article: Source

The Qatar-based directors of Syria International Islamic Bank (SIIB) resigned their roles at the behest of the Gulf Arab state’s central bank, to comply with US Treasury sanctions against the lender.
SIIB, formed in 2006 by Qatari and Syrian investors, was designated under anti-weapons proliferation laws by the US government on Wednesday, freezing its assets in the United States and prohibiting US firms and individuals from doing business with it………………………………………..Full Article: Source

Saudi Arabia’s rags-to-riches billionaire Sulaiman Al-Rajhi is also a world-renowned philanthropist. He is the founder of Al-Rajhi Bank, the largest Islamic bank in the world, and one of the largest companies in Saudi Arabia.
As of 2011, his wealth was estimated by Forbes to be $7.7 billion, making him the 120th richest person in the world. His flagship SAAR Foundation is a leading charity organization in the Kingdom. The Al-Rajhi family is considered as one of the Kingdom’s wealthiest non-royals, and among the world’s leading philanthropists………………………………………..Full Article: Source

The current global malaise is mainly a result of unethical business practices. A tidal wave of interest-accruing credit was unleashed on US home owners creating a profit bubble that burst asunder and caused what came to be known as the credit crunch, not Halal.
So today is a good time to explore what a true Islamic business ethics could look like. With a host of chief executives and CEOs paying themselves record amounts, does Islam have anything to say about how much people should be paid?……………………………………….Full Article: Source