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Recognizing the huge economic opportunities of Islamic financing, the Peace and Equity Foundation (PEF) in partnership with Al Qalam Institute, Cordaid and World Bank (WB) Philippines, is gearing up for drafting of the 21-year roadmap to attain compliance to Sharia'h-based financing industry.
Islamic Financing is touted as a growing "$2 trillion" global industry,
The roadmap will be patterned from the Southeast Asian countries like Indonesia, one of the leading countries in adopting Islamic Finance in the global scale. It will be divided into three stages with seven years each of realization.
Ricardo Torres, PEF's Partnerships and Program manager, in a press conference Wednesday, told reporters this 21-year journey will commence next year.
Torres was in Davao City for the three-day Sharia'h conference dubbed as “Islamic Financing in the Philippines: A Step towards the First Seven years,” at the Ritz Hotel and Garden Oases, "The first seven years will be the first step and we intend to implement it starting 2016. After this Sahria’ah conference which will be attended by some 200 stakeholders we intend to craft fully the whole roadmap,” Torres said.

The launch of MyETF-AGRI, the firm’s second Islamic ETF issued this year, brings the number of Shari’ah compliant ETFs in Malaysia to four and 18 in total in the world.
The global ETF market has closed in on the $3 trillion mark with Shari’ah-compliant ETFs only registering about $320 million of that total. In Malaysia, Shari’ah-compliant ETFs make up of over 30 % of the ETF market.
Malaysia does lead the pack, however, with the most Shari’ah-compliant ETF products in the world. Malaysia’s four Shari’ah-compliant ETFs account for some $75 million or 23 % of the global Shari’ah-Compliant ETF segment.
The launch of this landmark Fund represents many firsts for the industry including being the first agricultural-related Islamic ETF globally and the first sectoral Islamic ETF in the region while reinforcing Malaysia’s position as the global hub for Islamic finance and investment products.
MyETF-AGRI will look to invest in the 30 constituent companies that make up the Thomson Reuters Asia Pacific ex-Japan Islamic Agribusiness Index and in substantially the same weightings as they appear on the benchmark index.

After Super Typhoon Haiyan hit the Philippines, the United Nations World Food Programme (WFP) deployed logistics pipelines to transport emergency food products and other crucial relief items to the affected areas. Providing food is a major component of the emergency relief effort in the worst-hit areas. WFP has to date dispatched high energy biscuits and rice to three million people in Tacloban, Ormoc and Guiuan. In other areas, where power is on and markets open, WFP will support recovery with ‘Food for Assets’ programmes or cash transfers. Donations are welcome to fund the programmes. Find WFP's latest situation report attached; you can also learn more about WFP’s emergency response in the Philippines on the website wfp.org.

The Philippine Stock Exchange (PSE) will release a list of Shariah-compliant stocks this month to draw Muslim investors to the stock market. PSE tapped a third-party consulting firm to assist the exchange in selecting companies that will be part of the list. The PSE is on the first year of a three-year plan to expand liquidity by offering more products and services. The PSE has been introducing new products including real estate investment trusts (REITs) and exchange traded funds (ETFs) to boost volumes. For next year, the PSE should attract the same number as this year’s initial public offerings (IPOs), mainly from the consumer-related and infrastructure sectors.

Noor Islamic Bank (Noor) announced a waiver on all remittance charges for clients wishing to send money to relatives in the Philippines, in the wake of the Super Typhoon Haiyan. In addition, the Islamic bank has said that any of its corporate clients wishing to donate funds to the Philippines relief effort will have the processing charges waived. The decision to waive remittance and processing charges will remain in place until December 31, 2013. Individuals and organisations must have a Noor bank account to take advantage of the zero charges.

Item No. 9-19 (Jolo)
Qualification Standards:
· Educational Requirement: Bachelor's degree relevant to the job;
· Experience Requirement: None required;
· Training Requirement. None required; and
· CS Eligibility: C.S. Professional; Relevant Eligibility for Second Level
· Position, e.g. RA1080/PD 907

The Philippine Stock Exchange (PSE) tags Sharia-compliant companies in the bourse to attract more funds and, this way, to become part of the trillion-dollar investments of Muslims worldwide. Since investors from Mindanao have preferences regarding investment favouring Indonesia and Malaysia, the company is making a list. Hans Sicat, president of PSE, pointed out that investors' money amounting to more than trillion dollars could be going into Sharia-compliant companies. According to expectations, the list is to be released next year.

The Philippine Stock Exchange (PSE) plans to finish a list of Shariah-compliant stocks by next year. This way, it hopes to attract local and foreign Muslim investors. The ideas for next year include an index as well. Working together with National Commission for Muslim Filipinos (NCMF), they hope to contribute to the project and have already gathered experts from Shariah-compliant boards to discuss the processes.

Read more on: http://www.abs-cbnnews.com/business/10/26/12/pse-finish-shariah-complian...

Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas gave its approval to the Development Bank of the Philippines (DBP) for selling the latter's stake in the Al-Amanah Islamic Investment Bank of the Philippines (Al-Amanah). The approval was issued on 20th of September. The next step is to obtain the approval of the Governance Commission for GOCCs (GCG). After that it will be possible to proceed with the bidding process for its 99.88% stake in the country’s only Islamic bank.

Read more on: http://www.bworldonline.com/content.php?section=Finance&title=BSP-approv...

The Islamic Development Bank’s community development workshop has the purpose to empower Muslim NGOs in different parts of the world by offering them necessary training to boost their leadership skills.
Prominent leaders of Muslim organizations and institutions in 14 countries including Australia, Bangladesh, Brazil, c and the Philippines who had come to the Kingdom to perform Haj this year, including professor Siddique Hassan, vice president of Jamaat-e-Islami Hind, will be included in the program.

The ASEAN Equity fund will target medium- to long-term capital growth by investing in a portfolio of equities in the ASEAN markets with specific focus on the markets of Indonesia, Malaysia, Singapore, Philippines and Thailand.
The fund has an offer period to June 26, 2011.

Al Amanah Islamic Investment Bank of the Philippines (Amanah Islamic Bank) is the co-financer of an P80-million term loan for the General Santos City Water District.
The project is going to provide potable and affordable water supply in the progressive city. DBP is the majority stakeholder of Amanah Islamic Bank.

In order to extend Philippines, the only bank from this country has been placed on the auction block.
As part of its five-year rehabilitation program, interested parties will be given a 49 percent stake Al Amanah Islamic and Investment Bank of the Philippines (Amanah Islamic Bank).
The sale will help Islamic banking to enter expertise and technology.

Filipino finance secretary, Cesar Purisima, is touting Islamic microfinance in the Muslim majority state of Mindanao as a way of alleviating poverty and increasing social cohesion. Pursima was speaking to local press as the Filipino government starts talks with the Islamic Development Bank in Manila.

The government is keen on improving the lives of Filipino Muslims and efforts on this are expected to have more meaningful results as the government starts talks with the Islamic Development Bank (IsDB).

Amanah Islamic Investment Bank of the Philippines has announced the designation of Enrique D. Bautista, Jr. as its new Chairman and Chief Executive Officer. He is replacing Armando O. Samia who has rejoined the marketing group of state-owned Development Bank of the Philippines (DBP).
Joining Bautista in the board of Amanah Islamic Bank are Jose A. Nuñez, Jr. as vice chairman, and Francisco F. Del Rosario, Jr., Jose Luis Vera, Armando Samia, Samira Gutoc, Nabil Tan, Ibrahim Mamao, and Abdul Hadjisalam as directors.

The Philippines’ sole Islamic bank has opened a branch in the Muslim province of Sulu in the region of Mindanao.
The recently opening of Al-Amanah Islamic Investment Bank of the Philippines is expected to lure locals to open an account and save money instead of keeping them in their houses.