The euphoria surrounding Islamic banking had to wear off at some point. Banks in Oman that deal in Islamic finance have been one of the hottest investment stories of the past few months. While the party was in full swing, banks including BankMuscat and Bank Nizwa have been able to attract huge sums of capital from investors.
Now jubilation has been replaced by a little more weary navel-gazing, with Fitch Ratings warning that not all Sharia-compliant banks are created equal. Minnows such as Bank Nizwa and alizz islamic bank, currently establishing operations, may face a hard time as BankMuscat and HSBC Oman are poised to carve up the Islamic market………………………………………..Full Article: Source

USD 40 billion worth of sukuk was issued globally in the third quarter of 2012, almost double the amount raised during the same period last year, according to Zawya’s sukuk quarterly bulletin for 3Q 2012. This takes the total of sukuk issued during the first nine months of the year to a record USD 109 billion, up 69% from the same period last year.
The hefty issuance in the third quarter came despite the break caused by Ramadan and the summer holidays, according to the bulletin………………………………………..Full Article: Source

International Islamic Liquidity Management Corp., backed by a group of central banks located mainly in Asia and the Middle East, will launch its first sukuk of $300 million to $500 million “in a matter of months”, its chief executive said.
Kuala Lumpur-headquartered IILM, established last year, aims to issue short term sukuk, or Islamic bonds, to help sharia-compliant banks manage liquidity and create a liquid cross-border market for Islamic instruments………………………………………..Full Article: Source

Qatar Islamic Bank, the Gulf Arab state’s largest sharia-compliant lender, returned to global debt markets after two years with a $750 million Islamic bond sale on Wednesday, tapping into strong liquidity for regional issuers.
The lender priced the five-year sukuk at a profit rate of 2.5 percent, and a spread of 175 basis points over midswaps, tighter than the earlier guidance after strong investor interest………………………………………..Full Article: Source

The sukuk market has been one of the most talked about sectors in Islamic finance over the past few years, yet it makes up less than 8% of the overall Islamic finance market. According to Zawya, 2011 was a record year for sukuk issuance, which reached USD 84.4 billion.
2012 is already shaping up to be a record year with USD 68 billion issued in the first half, an increase of 55% over the same period of 2011. However, at some point in the not-so-distant future, this rapid growth will probably hit a glass ceiling, unless the market can grow outside of its Islamic boundaries………………………………………..Full Article: Source

Turkey’s Islamic bond market is gathering momentum as companies from the national airline to the biggest telephone operator plan offerings after the government sold its first local-currency sukuk.
Turk Hava Yollari AO, or Turkish Airlines, and Turk Telekomunikasyon AS (TTKOM) have contacted banks that may be hired for a sale, people familiar with the matter said yesterday. The government raised 1.62 billion liras ($904 million) from its first sale of lira-denominated sukuk……………………………………….Full Article: Source

Brunei needs to increase its sukuk issuances in order to allow securities trading and ultimately create a secondary market, an Islamic finance expert said. Sabri Ulus, the Head of Treasury and Markets at Bank Islam Brunei Darussalam (BIBD) said yesterday that the sukuk (Islamic bonds) issued by Autoriti Monetari Brunei Darussalam (AMBD) are “too small”.
“At the moment what we are doing actually, whenever the issuance comes up, we purely buy it, and keep it until the maturity (period). So if we want to trade, we cannot at the moment,” he said……………………………………….Full Article: Source

The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) has written to the government to “restructure” or “amend” the laws to allow Islamic banking in India .
RBI governor D Subbarao said: “Islamic banking is allowed in many parts of the world, but the Banking Regulation Act of India does not conform to Islamic banking because it allows banks to borrow from and deposit money with the RBI on interest. But we are in correspondence with the government on how our laws can be restructured or amended so that they are in conformity with Islamic banking.”……………………………………….Full Article: Source

New Islamic banks set up in Oman will struggle initially to compete with established conventional banks offering Sharia-compliant services when the country opens up its banking sector, according to Fitch Ratings.
“While there is demand for Islamic banking, and its growth across the Gulf is likely to outpace that of conventional banking, recent experience from Qatar suggests that customers in Oman will opt to get these services from established banks,” a report by the ratings agency suggested………………………………………..Full Article: Source

Supportive socio-political factors and economic incentives should accelerate the growth of Islamic banking activities in North Africa from current low levels, according to a new report published by Standard & Poor’s Ratings Services, Prospects For Islamic Banking In North Africa Improve Following The Arab Spring.
“Islamic banking started to emerge in North Africa in the 1970s when Egypt was among the first countries in the Arab world to authorise the establishment of pioneer Islamic banks. However, the sector is still branded as a niche market in the region, with an overall market share well below five per cent of total banking assets. We think the change in political landscape following the Arab Spring should rekindle the development of Islamic banking in the region,” said S&P………………………………………..Full Article: Source

Shuaa Capital soars as investment bank presents strategy, applies for Islamic banking The Dubai Financial Market General Index (DFMGI) gained 1.20% to reach 1,623.24, the highest index level since May 1 2012, amid strong trading volumes.
According to bank HSCB, the headline seasonally adjusted HSBC United Arab Emirates PMI™ - a composite indicator for the performance of the non-oil private sector - recorded a level of 53.8 in September, up from August’s 53.3 and “indicative of a solid improvement in operating conditions during the latest survey period”………………………………………..Full Article: Source

In a report on Islamic finance in North Africa, the rating agency Standard & Poor’s (S & P), highlights improvements of the prospects of Islamic finance in countries of North Africa, provided that regulators, policymakers and banks, create a climate of trust.
According to S & P, the development of Islamic banking in Egypt, Morocco and Tunisia could alleviate financing constraints facing these economies. Experts from the rating agency does not expect, however, “significant development for two to three years at least.”……………………………………….Full Article: Source

The Asian Development Bank (ADB) and Islamic Financial Services Board (IFSB) signed a MOU to facilitate international cooperation between the two organizations in promoting the development of Islamic finance in common developing member countries.
The MOU provides an effective basis for joint activities and general cooperation in areas of common interest. The MoU is aimed at enhancing cooperation in the form of joint technical assistance and/or policy-based work in Common Developing Member Countries………………………………………..Full Article: Source

Merging talks are at an advanced stage between Ithmaar Bank, Bahrain’s sixth-largest bank by market capitalization, and First Leasing Bank, the Islamic lender. The proposed merger has already been given the nod by both banks but their shareholders will have to discuss and vote over it at meetings scheduled to be held at the end of the month. The proposed deal has got the initial approval of Bahrain’s banking and financial services regulator, the Central Bank of Bahrain (CBB).
Mohammed Bucheerei, CEO of Ithmaar Bank, said the deal is part of their “vision of becoming a premier Islamic retail bank.”……………………………………….Full Article: Source

Islamic Development Bank (IsDB) will invest $ 1 billion into the Kazakhstan’s economy in 2012-2014. Respective partnership strategy was signed October 2, 2012 in Astana, KazTag Agency reports.
“The new strategy enables to (…) channel sizeable investments into transport, power industry infrastructure, agriculture, science, regional cooperation projects”, the country’s Minister of Industry and New Technology Asset Issekeshev said before the signing ceremony………………………………………..Full Article: Source

In his Ak Orda residence, Kazakh President Nursultan Nazarbayev has received the President of the Islamic Development Bank Ahmad Mohamed Ali Al Madani.
The sides discussed the ways of further strengthening of cooperation. The Bank’s equity totals 15 billion Islamic Dinars. The main mission of this financial institution is to promote economic development and social progress in the Muslim communities of different states………………………………………..Full Article: Source

Malaysia will be consolidating and capitalising on its comparative edge in Islamic finance to intensify financial integration and connectivity with international economies, mainly to support expansion of trade and investment activities.
Deputy Finance Minister, Datuk Dr Awang Adek Hussin, said Islamic finance has proven to be a potent tool for the nation to achieve more inclusive, well-rounded and sustainable economic development………………………………………..Full Article: Source

According to Deputy Finance Minister Datuk Dr Awang Adek Hussin, the Shariah compliant Islamic Finance is a viable alternative financial system for curbing excessive leverage as well as delinking financial intermediation from the real economy.
Awang Adek’s speech highlighted the importance of Islamic banking to further bankroll the real economy, and how the growing interest in Islamic finance as a force of moderation is receiving global attention. His view was seconded by Yoshihiro Watanabe, one of the three Japanese members of the APEC Business Advisory Council (ABAC), whose membership came from the direct nomination of the Japanese Prime Minister. Watanabe affirmed the importance of Islamic Finance completely, given the emphasis on ‘real economy’ as the ethical underpinning………………………………………..Full Article: Source