Al Hilal Mena Fund (AHMF), an open-ended fund based on Mudaraba structure, operating in accordance to the principals of Sharia is set to be launched on May 22, 2013. The initial subscription period will continue up to June 20, 2013.
Al Hilal Mena Fund (AHMF) will be the first Sharia complaint fund to be launched by an Omani bank and ahlibank is the sponsor of the fund, said a bank release. With the launch of Al Hilal Mena Fund, investors will be provided with an opportunity to participate in the economic growth and prosperity of the region whilst adhering to religious principles…………………………………..Full Article: Source

Central banks of the Islamic countries have been urged to adopt a separate set of regulation including a complete new Islamic Financial Reporting Standard to reduce confusion among Muslim scholars, Islamic bankers said.
They have also urged the regulators to develop an Islamic Inter-bank offered profit rate — to benchmark their rates and reduce dependence of the conventional interbank offered interest rates…………………………………..Full Article: Source

Sharjah Islamic Bank (SIB), in collaboration with the Al Hamriyah Free Zone Authority-Sharjah, has launched its latest banking programme, the ‘Zone’ package for companies registered in Al Hamriyah Free Zone in Sharjah, to facilitate and further ease banking procedures and transactions for companies and investors while enabling them to access exceptional services.
The new package enables new customers to obtain a book of 50 vouchers that allows registered companies and investors in the Al Hamriya Free Zone to make use of a number of free banking services, including postponed cheque depositing, ‘Cheque collection’, ‘Swift’ transfers, issuance of Watani Prepaid Cards, issuance of banking cheques and two cheque books, among other privileges. (Press Release)

Noor Islamic Bank (Noor)’s augmented reality ‘Bank in Your Hand’ smartphone and tablet application is now available for download from Apple’s App Store, the banks announced in a press reealse. Work is also in progress on adapting the app to other smart phone platforms, it said.
“A first-of-its-kind in the Middle East,Noor Appenables customers to access Noor’s full range of products and services, including instant mobile-to-mobile payments between Noor clients, personalized financial analytics, account opening, ATM and branch locator using maps with augmented reality features, transferring money locally or internationally, and paying credit card and utility bills,” said the press release…………………………………..Full Article: Source

Japanese food-makers are increasingly seeking halal certification for their products, with the global Islamic population forecast to grow from 1.6 billion at present to more than 2 billion by 2030.
Halal, an Arabic word meaning “permissible,” is used to designate foods that comply with Islamic law. Halal foods do not use pork and alcohol, while the use of poultry and other ingredients is permitted only after they are processed under particular methods…………………………………..Full Article: Source

MMC Corp Bhd has received nod from the Securities Commission (SC) to issue up to RM470 million of sukuk wakalah to part-finance the acquisition of operations and maintenance business of Hicom Power Sdn Bhd, for working capital and to help defray any expenses.
The approval was received on Monday via MMC’s unit Tanjung Bin O&M Bhd. MMC has within one year to issue the sukuk wakalah, in which each tranche will have a tenure of more than one year and up to 16 years from the date of issuance…………………………………..Full Article: Source

The Central Bank of Bahrain (CBB) announced today that the monthly issue of the short-term Islamic leasing bonds, Sukuk Al-Ijara, has been oversubscribed by 220%.
Subscriptions worth BD 43.9 million received for the BD 20 million issue carries a maturity of 182 days. The expected return on the issue, which begins on 16 May 2013 and matures on 14 November 2013, is 0.85% equivalent to 0.85% for the previous issue on 18th April 2013…………………………………..Full Article: Source

Syarikat Takaful Malaysia Bhd (Takaful Malaysia) has given a ‘No Claim Rebate’ payment of RM239,281 to Universiti Malaya. Takaful Malaysia Corporate Direct Assistant General Manager Noraini Mohd Yusof said the university has been its client for the last two years and has been enjoying the benefits since then.
“Last year we paid out a record amount of RM31 million as our 15 per cent No Claim Rebate and given the positive growth in our General Takaful portfolio, we are confident of a higher rebate being disbursed this year…………………………………..Full Article: Source

The financial market, whether Islamic or conventional, will always grow with a strong government and will not be affected by the ongoing protest by the opposition over the 13th general election results, said CIMB Islamic Bank Bhd executive director/chief executive director Badlisyah Abdul Ghani.
“The election result has shown that we have a strong government in the country, and we definitely will see Islamic finance grow more and more,” he said on the sidelines of the 10th Islamic Financial Services Board (IFSB) Summit themed “The Future of the Islamic Finance Services Industry: Resilience, Stability, and Inclusive Growth”…………………………………..Full Article: Source