The setting up of mega Islamic banks in Malaysia will not merely serve the needs of the domestic economy but also position the country as the benchmark in Islamic global finance, said Second Finance Minister Datuk Seri Ahmad Husni Hanadzlah.
It would also place Malaysia far ahead of other competing countries, he said. “Bank Negara has issued one licence. Why is there such a need… we need to see in the context of the country’s economy………………………………………..Full Article: Source

Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad has voiced his support for a proposal to set up a mega Islamic bank with Petronas and pension funds being used to underwrite some of the US$1 billion (RM3.2 billion) in start-up capital.
The influential former prime minister insisted last night there would be nothing wrong should the government decide to go ahead with Bank Negara Malaysia’s (BNM) proposal to use an injection from the cash-rich state oil firm as “Petronas money is government money.”……………………………………….Full Article: Source

Oman’s Bank Nizwa, a newly-formed Islamic lender which sold shares to the public in June, failed to elect a new board after it was unable to get the required quorum at a general meeting last week, three sources familiar with the matter said.
Bank Nizwa, the sultanate’s first Islamic bank, attracted 681 million rials ($1.77 billion) of bids in its initial public offering, 11 times the sum it planned to raise, signalling strong interest from investors………………………………………..Full Article: Source

Shareholders of National Bank of Oman have approved the Board of Directors’ recommendation for the appointment of the Fatwa and Sharia Supervisory Board for the Bank’s Islamic Banking Services.
The approval came at NBO’s Extraordinary General Meeting (EGM) held at the Crowne Plaza Muscat recently. Attendees also approved the Board’s proposal to amend certain articles in the Bank’s Articles of Association including the incorporation of Islamic Banking activities in compliance of Sharia Law, through the establishment of an Islamic Banking Window………………………………………..Full Article: Source

When the Supreme Council for the Armed Forces, which has ruled the country for the last 16 months, decided to dissolve parliament, the ramifications of the decision were not limited to the political arena, but also encompassed Islamic banking which had begun to benefit from the rise of Islamist political currents.
The parliament, in which Islamists controlled 70% of the seats, created powerful pressures on the Central Bank to allow more freedom to banks to provide Islamic Banking services. It also encouraged a greater number of banks to apply for licenses in order to provide such services. Such requests had been automatically rejected in previous years………………………………………..Full Article: Source

Equity Bank, the largest local bank by consumer base, plans to start offering shariah compliant products and services by the end of this year. Chief executive, James Mwangi said the bank has received the necessary approval and is putting up supporting systems to further grow its consumer base.
He said offering Islamic banking products was also a way of extending its financial inclusion agenda in the region. “This is also a good business opportunity and we also do not want to be a bank that’s inclined to only one religion,” Mwangi said. He was meeting global officials of Infosys, providers of Finacle technology used by the bank………………………………………..Full Article: Source

Dr. Ahmad Mohamed Ali, president of the Jeddah-based Islamic Development Bank (IDB) and Tiena Coulibaly, Mali’s minister of economy and finance signed an agreement worth $ 12.4 million for implementing a social housing project in Mali’s capital city of Bamako.
According to the agreement, by 2014 the project is expected to provide suitable housing along with basic facilities such as water, electricity and sanitation services for around 1000 families with limited income inBamako. The project will also provide around 8600 job opportunities during the construction period………………………………………..Full Article: Source

NASDAQ Dubai welcomed the listing of a $650 million Sukuk by Jebel Ali Free Zone ( JAFZ ) on its market. The listing confirms the exchange’s status as the largest in the Middle East for Islamic bonds, bringing the total nominal value of its listed Sukuk to $7.1 billion.
Jeff Singer, Chief Executive of NASDAQ Dubai, said: “As the international exchange serving the UAE and the region, NASDAQ Dubai is delighted to be chosen by JAFZ for its Sukuk listing. NASDAQ Dubai offers Sukuk issuers and their investors a well regulated, effective and internationally visible platform………………………………………..Full Article: Source

Dubai state-owned industrial hub Jebel Ali Free Zone (Jafza) repaid in full a 7.5 billion dirhams ($2.04 billion) Islamic bond, or sukuk, on June 21, five months ahead of maturity, a regulatory filing from the company said on Sunday.
The early redemption of the sukuk certificates was expected after the company, a unit of state conglomerate Dubai World , secured agreement from bondholders to change the terms of the notes last month. The sukuk was refinanced through a $1.2 billion sharia-compliant loan, along with a new sukuk issue of $650 million and the company’s own cash resources………………………………………..Full Article: Source

Bahrain is sounding out investor appetite at roadshows this week for an international conventional bond issue of up to $1.25 billion and analysts are already suggesting that the issue should attract support at a time when some Western bonds look questionable.
Bankers said Bahrain’s first conventional debt offering since 2010 would be open to qualified investors in the US and elsewhere. They said the bond might be as large as Bahrain last tapped the international market in November with a $750 million, seven-year sukuk, which was largely sold to investors in the Middle East………………………………………..Full Article: Source

Gulf investment funds dedicated to sukuk are increasing in size and number, but the growth spurt may not be enough to solve the concentration and liquidity issues facing the Islamic bonds market.
Assets of sukuk funds based in the Gulf now exceed $500mn, a 31% increase since last year, according to Reuters calculations based on data from fund companies. This remains small compared to the total Islamic bonds market; global sukuk issuance was $86bn in 2011, and $43bn in the first quarter of this year, according to Thomson Reuters data………………………………………..Full Article: Source

The S&P/OIC COMCEC 50 Shariah Index is designed to measure the performance of 50 leading Shari’ah-compliant companies from the member states of the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation (OIC). The Index has been designed in partnership with the OIC.
Companies from all 19 countries and territories whose exchanges are members of the OIC Exchanges and are covered by S&P Indices are eligible for the index. These are: Bahrain, Bangladesh, Côte d’Ivoire, Egypt, Indonesia, Jordan, Kazakhstan, Kuwait, Lebanon, Malaysia, Morocco, Nigeria, Oman, Pakistan, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Tunisia, Turkey and the United Arab Emirates………………………………………..Full Article: Source

Bahrain-based Takaful International has launched a new mobile application available on iPhone and Android allowing customers to arrange insurance at the touch of an on-screen button.
Younis J. Al Sayed, CEO of Takaful International said, “This new ‘Mobile Takaful’ application reflects Takaful’s commitment to support its customers in their mobility needs. Development of digital services is a key component of our strategy to be a leading and innovative mobility actor………………………………………..Full Article: Source

Brunei will have to wait for “some time” before human resource investments in Islamic finance begin to pay full dividends despite the sector already profiting from 20 years of experience and a generation of professionals that have grown up inside the industry, according to the Oxford Business Group.
Having introduced the Islamic finance option more than two decades ago, Syariah-compliant banking now accounts for around 40 per cent of the local market, a figure some experts believe would rise to 60 per cent by 2017, the OBG said in its latest economic update on the country………………………………………..Full Article: Source

Saudi Arabia’s Crown Prince Salman bin Abdulaziz said the kingdom will remain on its “Islamic path without deviation,” Arab News cited him as saying.
Salman, who also serves as defense minister, said he would try to strengthen the kingdom’s security and stability, the Jeddah-based newspaper reported. The crown prince made the comments as princes, Islamic scholars and senior military officials pledged their allegiance to him, the newspaper said………………………………………..Full Article: Source

The Muslim Brotherhood’s Mohamed Mursi was elected Egypt’s first Islamist civilian president, capping an acrimonious race that divided a nation whose economy is reeling and where the military has curbed his authority.
Mursi, 60, defeated Ahmed Shafik, who served as Hosni Mubarak’s last premier, election commission head Farouk Sultan said in a televised press conference. Mursi won 13.2 million votes or 51.7 percent, beating Shafik who garnered 12.3 million votes or almost 48.3 percent, Sultan said………………………………………..Full Article: Source