Posted on 15 May 2013 by Laxman | Email|Print
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
Posted on 10 May 2013 by Laxman | Email|Print
Pakistan’s securities commission has established a nine-member Shari’ah advisory board to oversee Islamic finance instruments in the world’s second most populous Muslim nation, a centralised approach increasingly being adopted elsewhere around the globe.
A country-level approach to regulating Islamic products was pioneered by Malaysia, and in recent months other economies have introduced central Shari’ah boards of their own including Dubai, Oman and Nigeria…………………………………….Full Article: Source
Posted on 09 May 2013 by Laxman | Email|Print
Considering the fact that Islamic finance is growing in the country with total assets of Islamic finance institutions hovering near a trillion rupees, the Securities and Exchange Commission of Pakistan (SECP) established a central advisory board to guide their transactions in accordance with the principles of Shariah.
In a press statement issued on Wednesday, the SECP said that considering the need for Islamic Financial Institutions and Islamic Capital Markets to innovate and operate within the purview of Shariah principles and to ensure aforesaid organisation’s business dealing were in line with Islamic principles, the equity market watchdog deemed it necessary to have a Shariah Advisory Board………………………………………..Full Article: Source
Posted on 07 May 2013 by Laxman | Email|Print
The initiative of Vice President and Prime Minister of the UAE and Ruler of Dubai His Highness Sheikh Mohammed Bin Rashid Al Maktoum to set up a comprehensive platform of Islamic economy products and services is crucial to finding a host that takes under its wings an industry valued at $4 trillions, Kuwait’s Arab Planning Institute (API) chief said on Monday.
The initiative known as “Dubai: Capital of Islamic Economy” was announced in January 2013 by Sheikh Mohammad. It aims at further diversifying Dubai’s economy and boosting Islamic economy; which stands at 11 per cent of world economy………………………………………..Full Article: Source
Posted on 30 April 2013 by Laxman | Email|Print
The first Darul Qaza or Sharia Court was inaugurated on Monday at the Anjuman-e-Islam School to fulfil the needs of the Muslim community in this metropolis.
“Though the Sharia court is present in Thane and Malegaon, Maharashtra, and marital and family-related cases are already being handled in Mumbai by Kazis, what is important is we will now have special premises in Nagpada in south Mumbai to deal with these problems,” Abdul Sattar Yusuf Shaikh of the All India Muslim Personal Law Board (AIMPLB) told Gulf News………………………………………..Full Article: Source
Posted on 26 April 2013 by Laxman | Email|Print
SEDCO Capital is a full-service Shariah-compliant wealth and asset management firm serving third-party institutional and private clients.The Simmons & Simmons team was led by specialist Islamic Funds and Finance partner Muneer Khan. He was supported by Funds partner Neil Simmonds, Tax partner Nick Cronkshaw, counsel Ahmed Butt, managing associates James Oussedik and Mohammed Majid, supervising associates Nicole Suignard and Candice Nichol and associates Kristi Lehtis and Robert Nield.
Commenting on the launch, Muneer Khan, said: “This is a unique platform with a number of very innovative new features, including the fact that it covers both liquid and illiquid investment strategies within a single legal structure. This is the largest and most diverse Shariah-compliant platform to be launched in Luxembourg………………………………………..Full Article: Source
Posted on 18 April 2013 by Laxman | Email|Print
New growth opportunities for Islamic banking, finance and investments identified at the 3rd Annual Middle East Islamic Finance and Investment Conference (MEIFIC 2013). The 3rd Annual Middle East Islamic Finance and Investment Conference (MEIFIC 2013) which was held today at the Dusit Thani, Dubai, saw more than 250 leaders in the international and regional Islamic banking and finance industry engage in critical discussions that focused on building the Islamic economy and strengthening Islamic finance’s links to the real economy.
Co-located with the 8th Annual World Takaful Conference (WTC 2013), the event was opened with a special inaugural address by Ahmed Bin Sulayem, Executive Chairman of Dubai Multi Commodities Centre (DMCC)…………………………………….Full Article: Source
Posted on 15 April 2013 by Laxman | Email|Print
Simply Sharia Human Capital (SSHC) is now offering the Islamic Finance Qualification (IFQ) in collaboration with the Shariyah Review Bureau (SRB). “The SRB-SSHC partnership will deliver the internationally recognised and UK-certified IFQ across the Gulf region,” announced a press release.
Yasser Dahlawi said, “Nurturing people with practical applications of Islamic finance and the governing rules of Shari’ah is an important transformation process of the Islamic financing industry. The knowledge and information which people will be acquire from the IFQ programme will allow them to continually serve the Islamic industry with optimal levels of service something which we strongly believe is the pulse of our time.”……………………………………….Full Article: Source
Posted on 12 April 2013 by Laxman | Email|Print
One of the great secrets of early Islam was the store that was set by justice and on fairness in commerce. It was significant that the spiritual revelations delivered to Muhammad promised a new way of doing things, a way that protected private individuals as well as businesses from being exploited by those with access to credit.
Of particular concern was the issue of the principles of lending money – a topic that appears repeatedly in the Koran………………………………………..Full Article: Source
Posted on 11 April 2013 by Laxman | Email|Print
Qatar is set to become a “key international distribution hub” for Shariah-compliant products as the Islamic finance market continues to emerge, a new report has shown. While infrastructure projects will feed new alternative fund structures and boost public-private partnerships, Qatar also has a long-term interest in developing as a centre for Islamic finance, said Qatar Financial Centre Authority in its first ‘Mena Asset Management Barometer’.
Currently, almost 50% of the funds located in the country are Shariah-compliant vehicles, marking it out — along with Saudi Arabia — as one of the region’s most important fund centres for Islamic finance………………………………………..Full Article: Source
Posted on 11 April 2013 by Laxman | Email|Print
Some articles of Egypt’s recently approved sukuk law are “definitely incompatible with Islamic Shari’a law”, said Abdallah Al-Naggar, a member of the Al-Azhar Council of Senior Scholars. When asked which articles were incompatible, Al-Naggar declined to answer.
He added that discussions over the sukuk law remain ongoing, and that the Council has decided to extend the discussion sessions until Thursday. The Al-Azhar Council of Senior Scholars refused to approve the sukuk draft law last December, saying the draft law will grant sukuk holders ownership of state assets and allow foreigners to subscribe to IPOs without a maximum ceiling………………………………………..Full Article: Source
Posted on 10 April 2013 by Laxman | Email|Print
Record growth in the Islamic financial services (IFS) segment in 2012 firmly cemented Saudi Arabia as a global leader in the industry. However, while the segment looks set for further growth several industry leaders have called for greater regulatory uniformity across global markets.
The Kingdom issued $10.5bn in sukuk in 2012, a 278% increase over 2011, according to a February 2013 report from Kuwait Financial House. While Malaysia remains the world’s top issuer, the Kingdom took the number two spot in 2012, following the $4bn General Authority for Civil Aviation offering, the first government-backed sharia-compliant bond issue, and the single-largest sukuk anywhere to date………………………………………..Full Article: Source
Posted on 10 April 2013 by Laxman | Email|Print
The Economic Committee at the Shura Council is set to accept $50m from the Islamic Development Bank (IDB). Ghadi Wali, secretary general of Egypt’s Social Fund for Development (SFD), said that the SFD will employ a number of international experts in order to review the potential outcome and effects of the IDB loan, at a time when the price of Egypt’s currency is decreasing.
She said that the SFD’s goal would be to distinguish between real losses and those suffered as a result of Egypt’s depreciating currency, accrued because of past, current and pending loans accepted by the country’s government. She added that “an American and Swiss expert will be brought in to present the findings of the Committee’s study to the Finance Ministry”………………………………………..Full Article: Source
Posted on 10 April 2013 by Laxman | Email|Print
Some articles of the recently approved sukuk law are “definitely incompatible with Islamic Shari’a law”, said Abdallah Al-Naggar, a member of the Al-Azhar Council of Senior Scholars. When asked which articles were incompatible, Al-Naggar declined to answer.
He added that discussions over the sukuk law remain ongoing, and that the Council has decided to extend the discussion sessions until Thursday. The Al-Azhar Council of Senior Scholars refused to approve the sukuk draft law last December, saying the draft law will grant sukuk holders ownership of state assets and allow foreigners to subscribe to IPOs without a maximum ceiling………………………………………..Full Article: Source
Posted on 10 April 2013 by Laxman | Email|Print
A private bank in Iraq has become the first among its peers to launch a local fund that will be marketed to foreign investors and regulated outside the country. Iraqi Islamic Bank for Investment and Development, the country’s oldest Sharia-compliant private lender, has teamed up with a Bahraini bank to develop an investment vehicle that will target one of Iraq’s lucrative and promising sectors - food.
With a population of more than 31 million people, the fund has already acquired sizeable interest from Arabian Gulf and European investors, prompting the Iraqi lender to increase the size of the vehicle from US$50 million (Dh183.6m) to $75m………………………………………..Full Article: Source
Posted on 10 April 2013 by Laxman | Email|Print
In fact, you hardly come across where news channels are free from economic discussions, debates and forecasts. You only find a few people who dare to come out from their comfort zones and spend nights and nights to implement their economic ideas.
Sometimes I permit myself to ask me about the problem facing the economy, and the first question that I ask myself is that: what if I don’t have something to eat? Alright! You must work. This is the simple answer in which I induce myself………………………………………..Full Article: Source
Posted on 08 April 2013 by Laxman | Email|Print
With the rise of political Islam across North Africa in the wake of the Arab Spring uprisings of 2011, Islamic finance is being touted as the solution to decades of unemployment and economic inequality. “We’ve tried socialism, we’ve tried capitalism, now we’re trying Islam,” cried supporters of Mohamed Morsi, when he was elected as Egypt’s first Islamist president last June. In Libya and Tunisia, new political movements have pledged to use Islamic principles to right their wayward economies.
But some critics, including advocates for the greater use of Islamic finance, believe that a sudden and rigid adherence to Islamic law, known as Shari’a, could dramatically slow down economic recoveries across the region at a time when governments are already struggling to establish stability………………………………………..Full Article: Source
Posted on 05 April 2013 by Laxman | Email|Print
It is a multitrillion-dollar sector. But halal is not just about food - as a conference displaying Malaysia’s lead in the area illustrates, it is rapidly evolving into consumer goods, pharmaceuticals and Islamic finance, with interest also from the Arabian Gulf.
The Petronas Towers stand proud above Kuala Lumpur, a city that has been transformed over the past 20 years from the quiet capital of Malaysia into a bustling regional hub, and one of the key proponents of the burgeoning halal industry. It is host to World Halal Week, a global convention that brings together buyers, manufacturers and industry experts all growing the US$2.1 trillion (Dh7.7tn) global halal market………………………………………..Full Article: Source
Posted on 28 March 2013 by Laxman | Email|Print
The Malaysian government is reviewing the operations of Islamic endowments as it seeks ways to have them run by private corporations instead of religious bodies. Facilitating corporate management of Islamic endowments, known as awqaf or wakaf in Malaysia, is one of several initiatives announced by the government in September to boost the country’s Islamic finance industry.
Awqaf operate social projects such as hospitals, mosques and schools with donations received from Muslims in the form of land, cash or other valuables. Malaysian awqaf hold 11,091 hectares of land valued at 1.2 billion ringgit ($384 million), according to the government’s Department of Awqaf, Zakat and Hajj (JAWHAR)………………………………………..Full Article: Source
Posted on 27 March 2013 by Laxman | Email|Print
A surge in exports boosted Dubai’s total non-oil trade by nearly 13 per cent to an all-time high in 2012 and such steady growth would support the emirate’s plan to become the world’s Islamic economy hub, officials were reported on Tuesday as saying.
From around Dh1,089 billion in 2011, Dubai’s total non-oil trade, including free zone commercial activity, swelled to a record high of Dh1,235 billion in 2012, maintaining its position as the main commercial and business centre in the oil-rich Gulf………………………………………..Full Article: Source
Posted on 22 March 2013 by Laxman | Email|Print
A fund management venture set up in Dubai this month is taking aim at one of the great backwaters of the Middle Eastern economy: Islamic endowments, which control tens of billions of dollars of assets around the region.
The endowments, known as awqaf, receive donations from Muslims to operate specific social projects, such as mosques, schools and welfare schemes. The system goes back more than a thousand years, to soon after the birth of Islam. Over the past few decades, as Middle Eastern populations have grown and the Gulf’s oil industry has boomed, awqaf have amassed a vast array of assets, from real estate to cash holdings, equities and even valuable books………………………………………..Full Article: Source
Posted on 21 March 2013 by Laxman | Email|Print
The Islamic Economy Higher Committee will create legal bodies to certify the Islamic products in Dubai by the end of this year. However this will be left optional, the Committee’s member and Director General of Dubai Department of Economic Development, Sami Al Qamzi, told Gulf News.
By the end of this year, the Islamic Economy Higher Committee will come out with a unified Islamic legislation to help encourage and support Islamic products in the emirate as well as to encourage the initiative of Dubai becoming the world capital of Islamic economy, he said………………………………………..Full Article: Source
Posted on 18 March 2013 by Laxman | Email|Print
Shariah, the body of law that governs all aspects of Muslim life, forbids riba, a word in Arabic commonly interpreted as “interest,” though it also means usury and all forms of unearned income. However, modern banking is established on the basis or riba, or paying interest to depositors and charging interest to borrowers.
Islamic banking attempts to provide modern financial services that are permissible in Islamic jurisprudence………………………………………..Full Article: Source
Posted on 15 March 2013 by Laxman | Email|Print
This week, the government launched a campaign promoting London as a centre for Islamic finance. The aim is to counter growing competition in this industry from rising centres such as Dubai and Kuala Lumpur.
Hamid Yunis - head of the Global Islamic Finance Group at international law firm Taylor Wessing - told the Today programme: “Islamic finance is generally business dealings in accordance with Islamic principles. “I think a good comparison is to those in the market who are playing in the ethical banking field.”…………………………………..Full Article: Source
Posted on 12 March 2013 by Laxman | Email|Print
The U.K. government is considering reviving plans to sell Islamic bonds as part of an initiative to boost Britain’s role as a center for Shariah-compliant financing.
Treasury Minister Greg Clark and Sayeeda Warsi, a minister in the foreign office, are leading a working group to raise the profile of the Islamic finance industry, the Treasury said in an e-mailed statement today. Among items discussed at today’s inaugural meeting was the sale of Islamic bonds, said Shabir Randeree, chairman of DCD London & Mutual Plc in London and a member of the taskforce………………………………………..Full Article: Source
Posted on 12 March 2013 by Laxman | Email|Print
London is set to go head-to-head with the world’s leading Islamic finance centres as the government pushes to make the UK a leading centre for Sharia-compliant lending. The government has announced plans to boost Britain’s profile as a hub for Islamic banking, in the hope of benefiting from the rapidly growing market for Sharia-compliant financial products.
A task force led by Greg Clark, Secretary to the Treasury, and Baroness Warsi, Foreign Office minister, has been handed the remit of “showcasing the UK as the preferred choice for the Muslim world to invest in and do business in”………………………………………..Full Article: Source
Posted on 07 March 2013 by Laxman | Email|Print
A company is sharia-compliant if it conducts its business according to sharia stipulations, and accommodates Islamic principles and disciplines in its business structures, setups, and operations. To achieve sharia-compliance the company must follow certain rules throughout the life span of its business.
Islamic finance is underpinned by ethics-oriented principles, and these have been broken down into clear and practical actionable units for companies to follow. However achieving sharia-compliance also requires attention to details………………………………………..Full Article: Source
Posted on 04 March 2013 by Laxman | Email|Print
Differences seen in interpretation of syariah compliance among various Islamic finance markets are fast disappearing as there has been rapid inter-market convergence of respective interpretations on a global scale moving forward.
Stating this, the chief executive officer of Standard Chartered Saadiq Bhd (Saadiq) Wasim Saifi noted that there had been a lot of talk in the past about variance between Middle East interpretation of syariah compliance and the interpretation seen in Islamic finance institutions in Malaysia. “As I see it, in the last two or three years and particularly this year it has become important, and I think that the convergence is happening………………………………………..Full Article: Source
Posted on 26 February 2013 by Laxman | Email|Print
There are two interesting facts about Islam in Indonesia. First, more than 87.18 percent of the country’s total population is Muslim. Second, there has been an escalation of Islamic expression since the 1990s, such as women wearing veils, laws and bylaws influenced by Islam, the publication of Islamic books and the proliferation of Islamic banking, clinics, housing complexes and dormitories.
But these facts are not reflected in the political orientation of voters. For example, all Islamic parties won less votes and received less of the national vote than all secular-nationalist parties in three consecutive general elections after the New Order era………………………………………..Full Article: Source
Posted on 14 February 2013 by Laxman | Email|Print
The Ministry of Awqaf and Religious Affairs has signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with Meethaq Islamic Banking Group, the Shari’ah-compliant window of Bank Muscat. The MoU was signed by Sheikh Abdullah bin Mohammed al-Salmi, Minister of Awqaf and Religious Affairs and Sulaiman bin Hamad al-Harthy, General Manager of Meethaq Islamic Banking Group.
Under the agreement the Ministry will open bank accounts in its names with Meethaq Islamic Banking Group, which will provide the required facilities to collect and distribute donations via all Meethaq products and channels, such as branches, ATMs, internet banking services, phone banking, collection and distribution of Zakat………………………………………..Full Article: Source
Posted on 13 February 2013 by Laxman | Email|Print
It had been reported that The new Islamic Financial Services Act 2012 (IFSA) will statutorily enforce management of Shariah-non-compliance risk and requires Islamic financial institutions to ensure at all times that their aim, operation, business, affairs and activities are in compliance with Shariah.
“This is perhaps one of the distinctive features of the IFSA 2012,” said Prof Datuk Dr Rifaat Ahmed Abdel Karim, Chief Executive Officer of International Islamic Banking Liquidity Management Corporation in a note. The Act, which is pending the Royal Assent, requires that any failure to abide by this statutory requirement has to be immediately notified to the regulator and the Shariah committee of the financial institution………………………………………..Full Article: Source
Posted on 13 February 2013 by Laxman | Email|Print
Egypt’s main hardline Islamist party says an IMF loan agreement requires the approval of a body of Muslim scholars under the new constitution and it is considering legal action to make sure the government sticks to the law.
The case could set a marker on the extent to which clerics will have a say over state affairs according to the Islamist-tinged constitution that was signed into law in December following its approval in a referendum………………………………………..Full Article: Source
Posted on 08 February 2013 by Laxman | Email|Print
Inconsistent regulation across the Gulf’s takaful (Islamic insurance) industry is hurting profit margins and credit ratings, while leaving the door open to regulatory arbitrage, according to global insurance rating agency A.M. Best.
New rules in Oman and updated ones in Bahrain are expected this year, but lack of coordination among regulators is making life difficult for takaful operators, said Vasilis Katsipis, Dubai-based general manager for market development at the firm………………………………………..Full Article: Source
Posted on 08 February 2013 by Laxman | Email|Print
It had been reported that Oman’s new Islamic banking rules could encourage the development of a larger pool of Sharia scholars and ultimately help to raise operating standards for them around the world, according to bankers and scholars.
Last month, the sultanate’s central bank released an extensive Islamic banking rulebook which included provisions for Sharia scholars, such as fit-and-proper criteria and term limits on scholars’ appointment to Sharia boards, which decide whether products and activities obey Islamic principles………………………………………..Full Article: Source
Posted on 07 February 2013 by Laxman | Email|Print
Islamic finance is widely available throughout the Muslim world, but is rare in the United States, says Yahia A. Rahman, who bought Bank of Whittier, a tiny community bank in Los Angeles that specializes in financing for Muslims who want to comply with Islamic anti-usury laws that prohibit the paying or charging of interest, in 1982 and five years later opened a related financing operation, Lariba American Finance House, to handle mortgages and small business ventures.
Deals are structured so that the bank buys into the venture with the entrepreneur, who runs the company and buys the bank out, with payments structured so that the bank is compensated for its investment. Profits and losses are shared; the overall cost tracks with a traditional loan repayment at a standard interest rate………………………………………..Full Article: Source
Posted on 05 February 2013 by Laxman | Email|Print
Islamic finance is a system of financial services that complies with the principles of Shari’a (Islamic law). Islamic finance is free from the elements of Riba (interest), Gharar (extreme uncertainty and lack of transparency), Qimar (gambling) and some other market malpractices which are prohibited by Shari’a.
Islamic finance transactions are typically asset backed as charging of returns on lending money is prohibited. Islamic finance is based on the principle of assuming risk / liability in order to obtain rewards……………………………………Full Article: Source
Posted on 31 January 2013 by Laxman | Email|Print
Malaysian Second Finance Minister Datuk Seri Ahmad Husni Hanadzlah said, “Islamic economics places socio-economic justice as its primary objective. The principles of justice, fairness and equity are fundamental in Islamic economics.”
He added that Islamic economics has the ‘solution’ to the economic problems of Muslim communities globally but stressed that theories developed in Islamic economics must be linked to practical policies in providing solutions to real life situations………………………………………..Full Article: Source
Posted on 30 January 2013 by Laxman | Email|Print
Islamic economics has the solution to the economic problems of Muslim communities globally, says Second Finance Minister Datuk Seri Ahmad Husni Hanadzlah. He said theories developed in Islamic economics must be linked to practical policies in providing solutions to real life situations.
“Islamic economics places socio-economic justice as its primary objective. The principles of justice, fairness and equity are fundamental in Islamic economics,” he said………………………………………..Full Article: Source
Posted on 30 January 2013 by Laxman | Email|Print
More attention needs to be given to ethics in economics and policies that affect the economy today, said the International Islamic University Malaysia (IIUM) dean Professor Dr Khaliq Ahmad.
“You cannot separate ethics as something that is not important in economics and finance. Unfortunately, the mainstream economics today has developed in a certain direction that tries to make ethics separate,” he said. He said mainstream or modern economics today aim to be scientific and objective, and do not include ethics………………………………………..Full Article: Source
Posted on 25 January 2013 by Laxman | Email|Print
A fundamental difference between conventional and Islamic finance is that, as the Islamic system does not permit risk-free capital, those operating under the Shariah framework cannot profit from the lending of money. Accordingly, the charging of interest known as riba is prohibited by the Shariah and instead, a system of risk sharing is promoted.
Riba can be defined as any increase over and above the principal amount payable under a contract, which is not covered by a corresponding increase in labour, commodity, risk or expertise………………………………………..Full Article: Source
Posted on 23 January 2013 by Laxman | Email|Print
A group of Muslim investors have filed to charter a new no-interest credit union based in Houston. Marketing to Shia Muslims in Houston, Dallas and Austin, the Jafari No-Interest Credit Union’s business model would rely on fees, rather than charging interest on loans to customers.
The credit union would also not pay any interest on deposit accounts. Because of the atypical business model — running on fees — I was interested in speaking with the founders of the credit union to get an idea about how that would work………………………………………..Full Article: Source
Posted on 21 January 2013 by Laxman | Email|Print
Kuwait Finance House Chairman Mohamed Ali AL-Khudairi praised his highness Sheikh Mohammed Bin Rashid AL Maktoum, UAE Vice President and Prime Minister’s initiative of adding the Islamic economy sector to the major sectors of Dubai’s economy.
Al-Khudairi said that the UAE’s initiative to bolster Islamic finance in the emirate will be positively reflected in the products and services offered by Islamic banks, including Sukuk, Takaful and the international arbitration involving Islamic contracts. He also mentioned the UAE’s deep experience in Islamic banking, having launched the world’s first Islamic bank, Dubai Islamic Bank, in 1975………………………………………..Full Article: Source
Posted on 14 January 2013 by Laxman | Email|Print
The basic difference between Islamic and non-Islamic banks is that all Islamic Banks are required to follow Sharia principles in structuring their products and services for their customers.
Whereas Current, Savings & Time Deposits, Loans & Advances may appear to be similarly priced by both types of banks, all products and services offered by Islamic Banks will be based upon and structured in line with Islamic Modes of Financing like Mudaraba, Murabaha, Musharaka, Wakala and others………………………………………..Full Article: Source
Posted on 14 January 2013 by Laxman | Email|Print
As I was on DIFC’s Islamic Finance Advisory Council (2007) and presently on Malaysia’s Securities Commission International Islamic Advisory Council, hence, a number of colleagues have asked me about the recent announcement by His Highness Shaikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice-President and Prime Minister of the UAE and Ruler of Dubai.
Shaikh Mohammed, stated: “Our cosmopolitan outlook to doing business continues to be our economy’s driving force. Adopting a modern and scientific framework for Islamic economies worldwide, here in Dubai, meets the demand from local, regional and international investors for a central hub to invest, grow and do business.”……………………………………….Full Article: Source
Posted on 11 January 2013 by Laxman | Email|Print
The latest initiatives by Dubai Government to a set up a comprehensive platform of Islamic economy products and services will strengthen its position as a global centre for Islamic economy, analysts say.
The move will see new comprehensive regulatory regime being set up to standardise and regulate Islamic products, services and practices that will strengthen a ‘parallel economy’ - free from conventional and interest-based financial practices………………………………………..Full Article: Source
Posted on 10 January 2013 by Laxman | Email|Print
Egypt has gradually been trying to come out from under the cloak of theocracy for many years now, the first attempt beginning after the start of the French occupation of Egypt.
Towards the beginning of that period, it was the scholars of Al-Azhar who led the campaign to expel the wave of infidel invaders, however it wasn’t long before they came to appreciate what those invaders brought in the way of modernity………………………………………..Full Article: Source
Posted on 09 January 2013 by Laxman | Email|Print
It’s true. Outside of oil and gas projects and a few specific infrastructure projects (ports like Jebel Ali and airports like Dubai), far less real economic development has happened in the oil-rich parts of the Arab world than would be expected based on their great endowment of human and natural resources.
The Islamic world isn’t monolithic, and it’s probably worthwhile to address relatively stable oil-rich states separately from Iraq, Iran, and Libya, again separately from other Islamic states without much oil separately from Asian Islamic countries like Malaysia and Indonesia. Let’s look specifically at the stable oil rich Arab Islamic states for now………………………………………..Full Article: Source
Posted on 20 December 2012 by Laxman | Email|Print
Governor of Bank Indonesia Darmin Nasution said that apart from being run by Sharia principles, the Islamic (Sharia) banking and finance system should be able to withstand turbulence and economic pressures.
“Islamic banking and finance should not only be based on Sharia principles and standards of Islamic banks, but must also withstand turbulence and economic pressure,” Darmin said here Wednesday………………………………………..Full Article: Source
Posted on 10 December 2012 by Laxman | Email|Print
Early in October, Bank Negara Malaysia, together with the Ministry of Domestic Trade and Consumer Affairs and the Companies Commission of Malaysia (SSM), raided several gold trading companies with the help of the police.
Among them were Genneva Malaysia Sdn Bhd, Pageantry Gold Bhd, Caesar Gold Sdn Bhd, Worldwide Far East Bhd and Bestino Group Bhd. Genneva — probably the largest and the most high-profile of these companies — attracted much attention from the public and the media………………………………………..Full Article: Source
Posted on 10 December 2012 by Laxman | Email|Print
The board of governors of the Central Bank of Oman (CBO) has revised the legal framework of the sultanate’s banking system for the implementation of Islamic banking activities in the country. According to a statement issued on Saturday, the board decided to introduce amendments to the existing banking law in relation to Islamic banking.
A Royal Decree issued last week amended provisions of the banking law to allow for the inclusion of Islamic banking as a licensed banking activity through either specialised banks or independent windows at existing commercial banks………………………………………..Full Article: Source