Morocco approves Islamic finance legislation

After months of delays, the Moroccan parliament finally approved the Islamic financial bill that will regulate Islamic banks and sukuk issues in the kingdom. This new bill will pave the way to financial institute to establish full-fledged Islamic banks in Morocco. It will be effective once it is published in Morocco’s official bulletin in coming days. Last month, Brahim Benjelloun Touimi, the CEO of “Banque Marocaine du Commerce Exterieur” (BMCE), said that the bank was preparing to launch an alternative subsidiary as a joint venture with a major Islamic financial institution from the Middle East, without revealing the identity of that financial institution.