IslamicFinance.de

Responsibilities:
· Manage and lead the Major Claims & Investigation Management for both Life Insurance and Family Takaful Individual claims while ensuring effective and efficient processing.
· To settle claims within the SLA and be prudent in claims decisions and management expenses at all times.
· Responsible for timely delivery of major claims services as per Service Level Management (SLM) objectives.

Manager - Basel II IRB implementation, Islamic Credit Risk
Responsibilities:
• Liaising/ communication to all project stakeholders as well as senior management regarding the Basel II implementation.
• Bring the gap between information providers, i.e. from various business and functional units source system owners/product owners for functional and data requirements.
• Facilitates to resolve concerns and issues associated with the project.
• Tracking ownership/ progress and reporting.
• Ensure completion of UAT/ Parallel Run and overall project completion, and
• Monitor and track IRB portfolios required for IRB coverage for the Bank.

Responsibilities:
· To assist in promoting risk and risk management awareness and sound knowledge of regulatory and internal requirement in the organization:
· Risk management programs to ensure a uniform process for identifying, assessing, and monitoring risk and controls is in compliance with regulatory requirements and Group risk management standards.
· Preparation of the periodic reporting to the relevant risk commitees on the state of risk management in the organisation.
· To provide risk management advisory services to business and support units as requested.
· Support Local (MY) Management in Operations Compliance Matters which include regulatory and internal policies compliance.
· Undertake ad-hoc projects as assigned by Head, Risk Management & Compliance

During the past year, there have been a number of cross-regional sukuk, mostly by Gulf issuers tapping Malaysia's highly liquid market. However, sukuk structures are not standardised, and some Gulf-based sharia scholars have objected to certain structures used in Asia, a region which has proven to be more flexible in its transactions. Sukuk issuance in the Middle East outside of the Gulf is also becoming more attractive, notably Turkey, which was recently elevated to investment grade credit status and is bidding to develop an Islamic finance industry. Growth in cross-border Islamic bond issues points to greater convergence in the industry, opening the door to a much wider pool of investors.

London-based Gatehouse Bank is considering applying for two or three licences in Malaysia in universal banking, investment banking, and or, wealth management to expand its business in Asia. The bank, which recently commenced operations in Malaysia via a representative office in Kuala Lumpur, would closely discuss licensing options with the Securities Commission and Bank Negara, according to chief representative of Gatehouse Bank in Malaysia Richard Thomas. The establishment of the representative office will be the first step in a two-year larger strategic plan to apply for a full-fledged licence. In these two years, the bank will conduct and collect research as well as analyses of the risks and rewards of investing in Asia.

Syarikat Takaful Malaysia Bhd will offer an additional 15 per cent no claim rebate to all its participants in the general and selected family takaful products. Moreover, the company will increase its value added service delivery amidst tougher competition. It was reported that Takaful Malaysia is confident of disbursing about RM35 million in no claim rebate this year to its customers given the positive growth in its General Takaful portfolio. Group managing director Datuk Mohamed Hassan Kamil said last year, Takaful Malaysia paid out a record RM31 million in no claim rebate to its customers, adding it is optimistic on capturing a more than 50 per cent market share from the current 40 per cent.

Guidance Investments (GI) has launched a RM150 million Shariah-compliant investment fund for equipment leasing for the Saudi Arabian market in partnership with Lembaga Tabung Haji (TH). This Tabung Haji acted as the capital provider, while the US-based ATEL Capital Group, the equipment leasing company is to provide the machineries for the Saudi market. TH CIO Abd Kadir Sahlan said that his company has committed a total of RM150 million in the private equity fund in support of ATEL in this venture. The funds will be disbursed in phases over the next two to three years, depending on the deployment of the portfolio in the Saudi market. At the same time, Guidance Investments has formally launched its operations in Malaysia with the opening of its headquarters in Kuala Lumpur.

The listed vehicle for Bank Islam Malaysia, BIMB Holdings is looking at several options to expand through overseas penetration and local expansion. According to Bank Islam Malaysia managing director Datuk Zukri Samat, the bank is still pursuing plans of expansion to Indonesia through a strategic partner with broad experience. As a fully fledged Islamic bank, the task is more challenging, he said. Moreover, the bank is also extending the time for its discussions with the Dubai Financial Group over the 30.5% stake in Bank Islam to the end of the months, said BIMB group managing director Johan Abdullah.

During the 10th Islamic Financial Services Board (IFSB) Summit key leaders discussed the industry’s developments following the global financial crisis as well as regulatory reforms, cross-sectoral approach to the regulation of Islamic finance, and prospects and challenges for new jurisdictions. The event was held on 16 and 17 May in Kuala Lumpur and hosted by Bank Negara Malaysia. It consisted of three sessions themed “Financial Regulatory Reforms: Global Overview”, “Cross-sectoral Approach to the Regulation of Islamic Finance and Market Development: Lessons Learnt” and “New Markets, New Frontiers – Prospects and Challenges”. The panel discussed issues like initiatives undertaken by the Basel Committee in recent years, supervision of all the sectors of Islamic finance as well as progress and development, prospects and challenges faced by the IIFS.

German insurer Allianz Malaysia is still keen on takaful business but is in no rush to get a licence, according to its CEO Jens Reisch. The Bursa Malaysia-listed company is involved in both general and life businesses, but unlike most other insurers, it does not have any takaful tie-ups. Reisch added that Bank Negara Malaysia (BNM) is not issuing any new takaful licence. He believes, however, that the implementation of the Islamic Financial Services Islamic Act (IFSA) will consolidate the industry and require additional capital for family takaful licence. Reisch also said that they were reviewing takaful constantly and closely, and if there was a chance to get a licence or a chance to team up or acquire another takaful company, his company would explore.

Islamic Development Bank (IDB) president Dr Ahmad Mohamed Ali Al Madani suggested four key areas for the Islamic Financial Services Board (IFSB) to focus on durich his keynote address at the 10th IFSB Summit in Kuala Lumpur. These include the creation of a conducive enabling environmen, adoption of IFSB and AAOIFI standards by all stakeholders, shortage of qualified manpower and financial inclusion through Islamic microfinance, supported by Zakat and Awqaf. In this context, IDB hopes for more collaborative opportunities with IFSB. Meanwhile, Sheikh Abdulla Saoud Al-Thani, chairman of IFSB 2013, highlighted some of the challenges that lie ahead in the Islamic financial service industry like the under-penetrated Takaful industry.

The board of BIMB Holdings Bhd is set to deliberate on Dubai Financial Group LLC's (DFG) sale of a 30% stake in Bank Islam Malaysia Bhd. BIMB's group managing director and CEO Johan Abdullah said that there is no official agreement yet, and that the board is going to discuss this by the end of the month. He added that the sale must have value proposition and earnings accretion for shareholders of the company as a whole. Bank Negara Malaysia (BNM) gave BIMB Holdings until June 30, 2013 to complete its negotiations to buy DFG's 30% stake in Bank Islam Malaysia. Therefore, the parties must ensure the negotiations are completed within this deadline.

State investment company Khazanah Nasional Bhd is gearing for more innovative investment options to follow its landmark portfolios in the sukuk marketplace. It plans to publish a coffee table book to share its success stories thus far. In recent weeks, Khazanah was in the news when it selected three banks to help arrange a sale of US$1 billion (RM2.98 billion) of convertible Islamic bonds. The Shar iah- compl iant bonds, or sukuk, would be exchangeable into shares of companies controlled by Khazanah. The company has launched innovative sukuk across Asia including the first global sukuk in US dollars, in Singapore dollars and in the yuan exchange. A rough estimate shows that Khazanah has helped raise US$3.5 billion for companies based in Singapore, Malaysia and Hong Kong, among others.

The Malaysia-based International Islamic Liquidity Management Corp (IILM), backed by nine central banks and monetary agencies as well as the Jeddah-based Islamic Development Bank, has said it plans to issue up to $500mn of dollar-denominated sukuk in the second quarter of this year, and eventually expand the programme to as much as $3bn. However, the company faces a delicate task as it designs its maiden sukuk: it must make the issue attractive enough for investors to buy, but not so attractive that most of them buy to hold. The IILM’s mission is to create a highly liquid tool which Islamic banks will trade to manage their short-term funds. Whether it gets the balance right will affect the development of Islamic money market trading in the Gulf and Southeast Asia over the coming year.

Takaful Ikhlas Sdn Bhd is looking to boost its family takaful business, regarded as a long term saving mechanism, to drive the company's growth and profitability further. According to its president and CEO Ab Latiff Abu Bakar, the company's family takaful business should grow by another 10% to contribute 70% of its gross contributions in the next three to four years. For the financial year ended March 31, 2012 (FY12), family takaful made up just over 60% of the operators contributions at RM501 million. One opportunity for growth is the expansion into corporate or group business which remains under-penetrated but a good way to reach the masses at a faster and cheaper rate. Takaful Ikhlas will also look to introduce new products packaged with Islamic services to further grow its family takaful segment.

Telecom Malaysia (TM) has enough cash to redeem its RM2 billion sukuk that will mature on December 31, according to its senior officials. TM has RM3.7 billion in cash and bank balances as at end-2012, its chief financial officer Datuk Bazlan Osman said. Therefore, the group does not see any need to issue more bonds to raise funds for now, he added. TM’s healthy reserves were lifted by a year-on-year growth in net income of 6.1 per cent from RM1.19 billion in 2011 to RM1.26 billion last year. This was largely helped by a 9.2 per cent revenue growth from RM9.15 billion in 2011 to RM9.99 billion last year, which TM claimed is the highest in the industry.

As Malaysians welcome their newly elected and returned Members of Parliament as well as state assemblymen, there is hope that people develop a better understanding and acceptance regarding different aspects of Islamic finance. People might better understand the different financial institutions that are undertaking Islamic financial activities in the market. Moreover, they might stop accusing Islamic financial institutions in general of merely emulating and replicating the products and services of conventional financial institutions. Legislators play a significant role in creating the right platform for a more inclusive Islamic financial market and we have not communicated enough on their roles in making Islamic finance in Malaysia the best in the world all these years.

With the ongoing credit squeeze from the debt crisis and uncertainty still stalking capital markets, many Western firms are eyeing up the Islamic liquidity pool as an alternative source of finance. The Irish energy group ESB had applied to local regulators in Malaysia for permission to issue a bond, with the aim of raising €1 billion. Had the issuance gone ahead, the ESB would have become the first Irish company, and one of the non-financials in Europe, to issue a Sharia-compliant bond. Nonetheless, prospective investors reportedly showed interest in investment in asset-rich companies like the ESB. Ireland already commands a share of pie when it comes to fund management, with some 20 per cent of Europe’s Sharia-compliant funds domiciled in Dublin’s Irish Finance Services Centre (IFSC).

The standards for Islamic asset management should be raised so that it can compete with conventional peers. according to Fajar Capital Group CEO Iqbal Khan. He said though the Islamic asset management industry remains marginal and fragmented and continues to lag behind conventional systems, its characteristics to compete in the market through values, ethics and authenticity will prove to be advantageous in the future. He added that global Islamic finance assets were expected to hit US$1.8 trillion in 2013, and Islamic asset management is expected to grow around US$300 million to US$500 million this year. He said Malaysia played a leading role, with a well structured approach, in the Islamic wealth management industry and hoped that Malaysia will export its success story to the rest of the Islamic world.

Khazanah Nasional Bhd., Malaysia’s state investment company, selected CIMB Group Holdings Bhd. (CIMB), Deutsche Bank AG (DBK) and Standard Chartered Plc (STAN) to help arrange a sale of $1 billion of convertible Islamic bonds. Khazanah could raise $500 million to $1 billion, though a final decision on whether to proceed has yet to be made. The sukuk would be exchangeable into shares of companies controlled by Khazanah. No decision has been made on which companies’ shares would back the Islamic bond.