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Kenanga Capital Islamic (KCI) has collaborated with a financing company Bay Group Holdings to enhance digitisation in the local factoring market. The collaboration will introduce a maiden local solution to the local factoring market through merging private and public sectors under a platform to tap into an underserved market, which is expected to grow fivefold from its current RM20 billion value. The partnership with Bay is expected to advance KCI’s position in the factoring market, reduce its overall operational costs as well as improve its efficiencies. Registered and regulated by the Securities Commission of Malaysia in 2016, Bay provides innovative digital solutions through its supply chain management platform and Bay P2P financing platform.

Asia Pacific Investment Bank (APIB) aims to cooperate with domestic financial institutions to promote the internationalisation of the Islamic finance industry. APIB CEO Chris Wang is confident that APIB could be the bridge that connects Malaysia and China. In light of the US-China trade war and the Covid-19 pandemic, the government is facing a critical challenge in leveraging the country’s position. Wang said APIB could help the government achieve the goal by making the country’s Islamic finance industry more dynamic. APIB is an offshore Islamic investment bank, established in January 2015 with the approval of the Labuan Financial Services Authority, headquartered in Labuan and its main operating office based in Kuala Lumpur, with representative offices in Shanghai and Nanjing, China.

Moody's Investors Service (Moody's) has completed a periodic review of the ratings of Dubai Islamic Bank (DIB).
Dubai Islamic Bank's A3 long-term Issuer ratings are derived from the bank's ba2 standalone baseline credit assessment and a five notch systemic support uplift based on Moody's view of a very high likelihood of government support from United Arab Emirates (rated Aa2), in case of need. DIB's ba2 BCA reflects the bank's solid profitability, deposit-funded balance sheet, and healthy liquidity reserves. These strengths are moderated by Moody's expectation of downside pressure on the bank's solvency in the 12-18 months on the back of lower oil prices, reduced investor confidence and the coronavirus-induced disruption.

Somalia's Sombank selected the Temenos Islamic Banking solution in the cloud to accelerate its digital transformation and create innovative products to increase access to financial services in Somalia. Sombank will implement the full front-to-back Temenos Islamic Banking platform, which combines the capabilities of Temenos Infinity and Temenos Transact. Temenos’ cloud-native technology will allow Sombank to create innovative digital products and offer lower cost services. Currently, Sombank serves customers via branch and online network and representative offices throughout Somalia. The bank will use the Temenos Infinity digital front office to create a unified customer experience for all financial and non-financial services across all channels.

CIMB Bank is looking for a director, Islamic marketing, communications and CSR, group Islamic banking (GIB). The appointed individual will develop and enhance the CIMB Islamic brand platform in line with business aspirations. The individual will also offer strategic marketing and communications support to GIB consumer banking, commercial banking, transaction banking, wholesale banking and asset management. The individual is expected to have at least 10 years of experience of relevant banking background in established banks or financial institutions, in-depth knowledge of Islamic marketing, communications and corporate responsibility, and working knowledge of Shariah and governance.

Emirates Islamic announced its financial results for the half year ending 30 June, 2020. The Bank reported a net profit of AED 12 million for the first half of 2020. The total income is of AED 1.1 billion, lower by 15% year-on-year. Funded Income margins are lower by 25 bps year-over-year due to lower profit rate environment. Total assets stand at AED 64.2 billion, decreased by 1% from end 2019. Customer accounts stand at AED 45 billion, broadly flat from end 2019, while current and savings accounts balance up 10% from end 2019.

The consolidated financial results of Faisal Islamic Bank of Egypt showed a 53.6% year-on-year (YoY) drop in its net profits to EGP 483.53 million in the first quarter (Q1) of 2020 from EGP 1.043 billion. Meanwhile, the bank’s revenues fell to EGP 2.63 billion in the January-March period, compared to EGP 3.22 billion in the corresponding period a year earlier. It is worth mentioning that in 2019, Faisal Islamic Bank of Egypt reported consolidated net profit of EGP 2.78 billion, up from EGP 2.56 billion in 2018, including minority shareholders’ rights.

Al Baraka Islamic Bank has launched a promotional campaign to provide property financing to the beneficiaries of the Housing Ministry’s Mazaya programme. Under the campaign, profit rates will be calculated at competitive rates, there will be no down payments, and zero banking fees. The bank will also cover the fees of life insurance for the beneficiaries and will provide fire insurance for the property. Also, there will be instant prizes for the executed deals. The financing is up to BD120,000 with maximum duration of 25 years.

ADIB has launched a series of special offers exclusively to healthcare professionals as a tribute for their efforts during the COVID-19 pandemic. These offers include reductions and discounts on ADIB products: special reduction on the profit rate of personal and auto finance; AED500 reduction in fees for ADIB covered cards or a voucher from Amazon or Noon when applying for cards; fixed profit rates on home finance starting from 2.99% per annum on home finance; 20% fee reduction on all wealth management products; Smartaccount welcome pack and no minimum balance requirement for Smartbanking; an iPad with every Life and Savings Takaful plan, if an AED 1,000 monthly contribution is made. ADIB was among the first UAE financial institutions to launch relief measures for customers during COVID-19, including the postponement of monthly installment payments and the reduction of certain fees.

Saudi Arabia’s mortgage lender Amlak International for Real Estate Finance starts trading shares on the Tadawul stock exchange. The company is floating 27.18 million shares, or 30 per cent of its total, with an indicative price range set at 15-17 Saudi riyals (Dh14.7-Dh16.6) per share. Proceeds of the offer are being used to repay selling shareholders. Amlak International was set up in 2007 and is a non-bank lender, mainly of property loans. Shares in Amlak International's IPO will be allocated on a pro-rata basis to individuals who subscribed to the offer, depending on the size of their request.

According to Fitch Ratings, Islamic financing and deposits accounted for 27% of total sector financing and deposits at end-2019. Growth in Islamic financing slowed significantly in 2019. Asset-quality metrics deteriorated in 2019, particularly due to pressures in the real estate and contracting sectors, but also in entertainment, hospitality, and retail and wholesale trade. The operating profit/risk-weighted assets ratio also deteriorated due to increased financing impairment charges. Capital ratios have increased over the past four years, while core capital ratios remain below those of conventional banks but the difference has narrowed.

Barwa Bank held yesterday its Ordinary General Assembly and approved all the agenda of the meeting. The annual general meeting was presided over by the Bank's Chairman and Managing Director Sheikh Mohammed bin Hamad bin Jassim Al Thani. It was held via video conferencing. The focus of the meeting was on completing the full merger process with International Bank of Qatar, in addition to statistics and financial results for the year 2019 as well as the Bank's future plans. The merger took place in a record time that did not exceed 11 months. Barwa Bank recorded remarkable growth, as its total revenue increased by 43% to reach QR3.3bn, while total assets reached QR77bn, supported by financing assets that exceeded QR51bn.

Al Salam Bank-Bahrain (Al Salam Bank) has achieved the highest reduction in non-performing financing (NPF) amongst 55 GCC listed banks in 2019. According to KPMG, the Bank also ranked sixth in the region for Capital Adequacy Ratio (CAR), with a strong standing of 20.9%. The KPMG report notes that the region’s positive results were coupled with an increased focus on digitisation. Al Salam Bank has come to be recognised as one of the key institutions driving the digitisation of financial services in Bahrain. Al Salam Bank is continuing the successful roll-out of its three-year strategy, focused on giving customers a virtual branch and an onboarding app that enables clients to open their accounts within minutes.

Al Hilal Bank has completed the sale of Al Hilal Takaful to Siraj Holding. The divestment was driven by Al Hilal Bank's strategic decision to focus on delivering high-quality retail banking services, primarily through digital channels. Al Hilal Bank was acquired by ADCB in May 2019, following the merger between ADCB and Union National Bank (UNB). Full integration of the three banks was completed in early April 2020.

The Egyptian Financial Regulatory Authority (FRA) approved a request from Faisal Islamic Bank of Egypt to publish the disclosure form to proceed with its capital increase procedures. The disclosure form included the board of directors’ approval to raise the company’s issued capital by $66.02 million to $506.2 million from $440.19 million. The capital increase will be carried out by issuing 66.03 million shares at a nominal value of $1 or its equivalent in the Egyptian pound per share through a 0.149-for-one bonus issue.

As Pakistan gears up to borrow as much as Rs750 billion in Islamic bonds from the country’s financial system, one bank is set to benefit more than all others: Meezan Bank. The forecast for the net interest margin for Meezan Bank is 5.43% in 2020 and 4.72% in 2021. The key cause of the bank’s growth is its rapid expansion of its branch network, coupled with the fact that its brand name and credibility in Islamic finance mean that the bank rarely ever struggles to attract deposits. Over the past two years, Meezan Bank has added 159 branches, which represents a 21% increase over that period.

Fondée en 2010, Banque Zitouna s’est rapidement développée en peu d’années s’imposant ainsi en tant que banque islamique entièrement évolutive en Tunisie. Le long de ses 10 années d’existence, Banque Zitouna n’a cessé de se réinventer toujours en accord avec ses valeurs de Banque islamique, en créant de la proximité avec ses clients et ses territoires, vecteur principal de sa réussite. En mars 2019, le Groupe Majda Tunisia a racheté les parts de l’Etat dans le capital de la banque. Banque Zitouna envisage également une expansion à l’international notamment en Afrique, au Maghreb et en Europe, outre la mise en place d’un plan de transformation digitale et le développement de nouvelles activités à travers la création de nouvelles filiales.

Abu Dhabi Islamic Bank has announced the resignation of its Chief Executive Officer, adding that the Chief Operation Officer (COO) will take over as caretaker. The bank did not provide reasons for Mazin Manna’s resignation. COO Sandeep Chouhan has been appointed to serve in the capacity until appointment of a new chief. The resignation occurred following a report of decrease in net profit Q1, from AED600.3 million to AED269.7 million same period last year.

Hong Leong Islamic Bank (HLISB) has appointed Professor Dr Rusni Hassan as the chairman of its Shariah Committee effective April 1, 2020. Rusni is a professor at the IIUM Institute of Islamic Banking and Finance and is an influential veteran in the Islamic finance and banking industry. Her works and contributions to Islamic finance have also been recognised internationally including being listed in the prestigious Top 10 Most Influential Women in Islamic Business and Finance 2019 and Top 50 Most Influential Women in Islamic Finance 2018 by Cambridge IFA.

According to Fitch Ratings, Saudi Islamic banks’ financial metrics deteriorated mildly in 2019 but remained sound. As for conventional banks, the rating agency noted that the impaired financing ratios continued to increase in 2019. Islamic banks have lower impaired financing ratios and financing impairment charges than conventional banks due to their lower proportion of corporate banking. Islamic banks’ profitability remained above conventional banks’ in 2019. Strong deposit growth at Islamic banks in 2019 allowed their financing/deposits ratio to drop below their conventional peers’. Saudi Islamic banks remain well capitalised, with an average Common Equity Tier 1 ratio of 17.8% at end-2019. According to Fitch, if the current economic disruption continues, weaker asset quality and profitability are likely to put pressure on capital.