As financial services adhering to Islamic principles continue to gain popularity in Asia, Japanese financial institutions have started offering such products in Muslim countries in the region. Bank of Tokyo-Mitsubishi UFJ and Sumitomo Mitsui Banking have organized a syndicated loan of $184 million dollars for a maritme shipping company affiliated with the Brunei government.
The funds will be used to expand the company’s liquefied-natural-gas carrier fleet. But to comply with Sharia law, which prohibits the charging of interest, the loan will be made to a special-purpose company that will purchase LNG carriers and lease them to the shipping company. Instead of interest, the lenders will receive leasing fees………………………………………..Full Article: Source

While lenders in the United States and Europe have downsized their exposure in banking in compliance with Islamic law, Islamic financial institutions in Southeast Asia and the Middle East and Africa (MEA) region are taking over the initiative.
According to global consultancy Ernst and Young, worldwide investments done in line with Islamic law, known as Shari’ah, will reach 1.8 trillion U.S. dollars globally in 2013. There was a time when major Western banks like Citigroup, HSBC, UBS and Deutsche Bank set the pace for the developments in Islamic finance, while their much smaller counterparts in the Muslim world just followed. In recent years, this order has been almost completely shifted in favor of the East………………………………………..Full Article: Source

Barwa Bank has been chosen to co-lead manage Dubai’s $750m sukuk issuance, which is the first sovereign sukuk of 2013 in the region. Barwa Bank has opened the year in the debt capital markets in the same manner as in 2012, being chosen for the second time as co-lead manager by Government of Dubai, for what is “one of the most sought after credits” in the Middle East and North Africa (Mena) region.
Barwa Bank CEO Steve Troop said: “We are extremely proud to have been selected again as co-lead manager by the Government of Dubai. Having the opportunity to be associated for the second time with a transaction of such significance indicates our credibility, strong regional relationships and delivery, as well as access to liquidity………………………………………..Full Article: Source

The recent announcement of Sime Darby Bhd’s (Sime Darby) successful pricing of its first US$800 million sukuk issue will bode well for the group with positive spillover effects into the group’s order book. “We gather that the sukuk will be issued in two tranches of US$400 million with a five-year tenure and the balance US$400 million with a 10-year tenure respectively,” noted analysts at Kenanga Investment Bank Bhd (Kenanga Research).
“This is part of its Multi-Currency Sukuk Programme with a limit of up to US$1.5 billion. “Pricing for the five-year tenure, the sukuk was at 130 basis points (bps) above US Treasuries rate or 2.053 per cent while the 10-year tenure sukuk was at 145bps above US Treasuries rate or 3.290 per cent,” it added………………………………………..Full Article: Source

The Islamic banking seg­ment strengthened its position within Brunei Darussalam’s financial services industry last year on the back of rising demand that led to the launch of a new bank and major bond issuances. Having moved early to estab­lish shariah-compliant services, the Sultanate is now well placed to carve out a niche for itself as an international Islamic bank­ing centre.
However, the industry will need to address a number of chal­lenges, led by a shortage of skilled workers, if it is to fully support the segment’s development. In mid-October, Standard Chartered Bank Brunei (SCB) said it was mulling plans to intro­duce Islamic banking products this year to meet increased de­mand for sharia-compliant bank­ing services in the Sultanate………………………………………..Full Article: Source

J. P Morgan Chase has hired Hussein Hassan as its global head of Islamic finance, the US-based investment bank said in a statement on January 22. Hassan was previously at UBS, where he was global head of Islamic structuring and head of structuring for the Middle East and North Africa (MENA), the statement said.
“Hussein is widely acknowledged as one of the most experienced and prominent Islamic banking experts and I am confident his knowledge will help us to serve clients better across the globe,” Sjoerd Leenart, senior country officer for MENA at J. P Morgan, said………………………………………..Full Article: Source

UAE-based National Bank of Ras Al-Khaimah (Rakbank) said it has registered a 16.6 per cent growth in its net profit for 2012 which rose to Dh1.4 billion ($381 million) when compared to the same period the year before.
The leading retail and small business bank in the UAE continues to report double digit growth year on year by consistently pursuing its successful strategy towards the business and personal finance segments………………………………………..Full Article: Source

The private sector in the Kingdom has been spurred into action, giving a major boost particularly to real estate, construction, health care, education, financial services and a host of other activities, thus offsetting some of the global economic gloom, according to Khaled Al-Aboodi, CEO of the Islamic Corporation for the Development of the Private Sector (ICD), the private sector arm of the Islamic Development Bank (IDB) Group
“However, financing for small and medium enterprises (SMEs) is not yet developed in most of the member-countries,” Al-Aboodi told Khalil Hanware of Arab News in an exclusive interview. “Even in GCC countries, there is lack of access to financing for SMEs,” Al-Aboodi pointed out………………………………………..Full Article: Source

The beating heart of an Islamic bank is actually the treasury and its uniquely qualified people. Treasury, at one time, was about liquidity management, and now has become a profit centre for banks.
The challenge for Islamic finance treasury is there are not many options, vis-a-vis, conventional treasury on liquidity management, hence, their important contribution adds to not only the bottom line, but also the bonus!……………………………………….Full Article: Source

Qatar is ready to go to the top of the Big League of Islamic finance as her economy shifts up a notch in readiness to fulfil the promise of Qatar National Vision 2030. How far Qatar can continue to stay ahead of the curve in a global economy that is still struggling to come to grips with the worst ravages of the global financial crisis?
Several of the Gulf Cooperation Council’s member continue to enjoy economies that are buoyed by revenues from plentiful natural resources, Qatar included, but the International Monetary Fund in recent weeks has urged economies across the Middle East to introduce fiscal restraint and deeper reforms in order to be able to safeguard their future in the midst of a still precarious world economy………………………………………..Full Article: Source

Dubai, recovering from a 2008-10 corporate debt crisis and property market collapse, is eager to lure more foreign capital. In one initiative announced early this month, the emirate said it would revise regulations to become a regional center for Islamic finance and other Islamic businesses.
The UAE has for years been working on legislation that would in some cases let the cabinet approve 100 percent foreign ownership in firms outside free zones………………………………………..Full Article: Source

Amãna Takaful, one of Sri Lanka’s fastest growing composite insurers recently presented its annual plan cascade to its staff. Under the theme ‘We Are Winning’, all staff members were presented with the 2012 performance of the company highlighting the year and the milestones achieved above expectations on many fronts.
“We are winning. Our growth trajectory is promising and we have expanded to new markets in 2012. This year we are even more bullish to reach the homes and offices of more Sri Lankans to introduce them to the concept of Takaful through products of mutual value”, said Fazal Ghaffoor, Chief Executive Officer, Amana Takaful PLC, making a presentation to the audience that had converged from all branches………………………………………..Full Article: Source