Islamic Banking

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Talk on Islamic finance, money, and banking crisis in Zurich and online

As salamu Alaikum,
Next saturday, May 13, 2023, at 15.00 I present as guest of Muslim Student Association in Zurich (@msazurich) on the 1st chapter of my book and then go into the banking crisis and money creation. The talk is in English.

Physical
???? Samstag, 13. Mai 2023
? 15:00 - 17:00
???? Building KAB, floor G, room 01
????? Kantonsschulstrasse 3, 8001 Zürich

Physical attendance - registration linked at @msazurich and in my link tree in Insta profile. (just confirm lengthy privacy in German).
Talk online accessible without registration: Click on Linktr.ee/islamgeldwohlstand - presentation on bigbluebutton/senfcall similar to zoom - no installation required or instagram @islamgeldwohlstand

My German book "Islam, Geld und Wohlstand - Ein Handbuch über Finanzen und Vorsorge" can be obtained:
Instagram:
DE: @islambooks24
CH: @IslamShop.ch
or any other bookstore or online dealer in German speaking countries - if you are publisher interested for your country, please contact me.

#Indonesia gains heft in Islamic banking with 3-way merger

The Indonesian government announced that it would merge the syariah units of three state-owned lenders to create the country’s seventh-largest bank. Pending approval by regulators, the syariah units of Bank Rakyat Indonesia, Bank Mandiri and Bank Negara Indonesia will join forces by February to form a lender with roughly 215 trillion rupiah (S$19.8 billion) in assets. The move is part of an ongoing effort among Indonesian officials to capture a bigger slice of the market of religiously observant Muslims.

Islamic banks “vital in accelerating #UK fintech transformation” according to expert

Al Rayan Bank, the UK’s oldest and largest Islamic bank, has announced that more than 20,000 of its customers are now using its digital banking services for their day-to-day banking. According to Dr Samir Alamad, Sharia compliance expert at Al Rayan Bank, Islamic finance institutions have a significant growth opportunity in their hands by making the digital shift, catering not only for Muslim communities but mainstream audiences alike. Their role is vital in reinforcing the UK’s position as a fintech hub and in growing awareness of Islamic finance overall. The Al Rayan Bank Mobile Banking app is available on the App store and Google Play – as well as through its desktop portal, which users can access using the app, through a separate authenticator app or using a hard token device. From 2021, customers will also be able to use the app to validate online purchases made using an Al Rayan Bank debit card.

Ethiopie : ZamZam Bank devient la première banque islamique du pays

En Ethiopie, ZamZam Bank exercera désormais l’activité de banque islamique après avoir obtenu la licence à cet effet auprès du régulateur du secteur. L’institution est la première du pays qui proposera exclusivement des services financiers conformes à la charia. En mai 2019, Abiy Ahmed, le Premier ministre éthiopien, s’était officiellement prononcé en faveur de la mise sur pied d’institutions financières entièrement dédiées à la finance islamique. Plusieurs établissements ont manifesté un intérêt pour l’activité, parmi lesquels ZamZam Bank qui a déposé sa demande auprès de la Banque centrale. Elle a été autorisée à ouvrir son capital à des investisseurs afin de lever des fonds dédiés à la mise en place de sa banque islamique, et a vendu des actions pour un montant d’environ 18,3 millions $.

L’arrivée de la première Banque Islamique d’Australie retardée, mais confirmée très bientôt

Alors qu’elle avait trouvé son point d’ancrage sous le ciel ensoleillé de l’Australie, la finance éthique par excellence s’est heurtée à un écueil majeur, difficilement contournable. Si elle n’a pas encore largué les amarres sur l’îlot lointain du multiculturalisme, Covid-19 oblige, la première Islamic Bank for Australia (IBA) devrait toutefois prochainement, à l’horizon 2021, en faire son nouveau port d’attache. Loin de la France et de ses cris d’orfraie contre « l’halalisation » de l’Hexagone qui se perdent dans l’immensité des océans, la première banque islamique d’Australie se prépare à accoster sur les rivages de ce grand pays exportateur de produits Halal qui, demain peut-être, sera la nouvelle place forte de la finance éthique à l’autre bout du monde.

ZamZam Bank becomes #Ethiopia’s first Islamic bank

ZamZam Bank has obtained a license from Ethiopia’s banking regulator to carry out Islamic banking activities in the country. In May 2019, Abiy Ahmed, the Ethiopian Prime Minister, expressed his approval in favor of the establishment of financial institutions entirely dedicated to Islamic finance. Several institutions have expressed interest in the activity, including ZamZam Bank which filed its application with the Central Bank. The bank was authorized to open its capital to investors to raise funds for its plan. As part of this process, ZamZam sold $18.3 million worth of shares. According to the National Bank of Ethiopia, the presence of institutions entirely dedicated to Islamic finance will improve financial inclusion in the country.

Fintech Is viable vehicle for deepening Islamic finance in Nigeria: Jidda

According to Muhammad Jidda, Head Shari’ah Audit and Product Development, SunTrust Bank Nigeria, Fintech is a viable platform that can be leveraged to boost Islamic Finance in Nigeria. According to him, the pathway is harnessing the various spheres of Fintech and Digital banking to grow the market with innovative products and offerings. Providing further insight he said the Covid 19 pandemic made it imperative to deploy a digital technology strategy for financial services, and fintech was the way to go. He noted that through Fintech a lot of awareness and sensitization can be created on Islamic Finance, through the digital and mobile platforms across the country, which could have a wider reach to people in the rural communities.

#Kuwait central bank gives nod to Shariah committee for Islamic finance

The central bank of Kuwait’s board of directors has approved the establishment of the Higher Committee of Shariah Supervision for Islamic finance. The Committee’s key roles are to: give its opinions and advice to the central bank on Shariah compliance of financial transactions; propose general guidelines for products and services; propose controls to regulate the business of Shariah supervision bodies; conduct internal and external Shariah audits; give final decisions where deliberations of Shariah supervision authorities are inconclusive. Several countries have Shariah committees for Islamic finance at their central banks including Malaysia, Pakistan, Oman and the UAE. However, their powers differ from country to country.

GCC Islamic asset managers stay resilient

According to Moody's Investors Service, net inflows into some large Islamic funds in the GCC countries have remained positive despite weaker markets and lower oil prices. The ratings agency said it expects growth in Islamic assets under management to slow between 2% and 4% this year. According to the Global Islamic Finance Markets Report, Shariah-compliant assets represent a significant portion of total banking assets of the GCC. While in the Middle East and North African region, Islamic banking assets represent 14% of total banking assets, in the GCC this market share crossed the 25% threshold. Globally, Islamic finance assets are expected to grow at a compound annual growth rate of 5.5% to hit $3.4 trillion during the next five years. Malaysia and Saudi Arabia are the largest Islamic financial service in the world, accounting for almost two-thirds of Islamic assets under management between them.

Saudi Arabia fortifies position as largest Islamic finance market

Moody's expects Islamic financing in Saudi Arabia to reach around 80% of system-wide loans in the next 12-18 months, up from 78% of loans in 2019 and 70% in 2013. Moody’s noted that corporates and households are increasingly using Islamic products amid the economic challenges posed by low oil prices and the coronavirus crisis. Saudi Arabia had a total of $339 billion in Islamic finance assets as of March 2020, leaving Malaysia in a distant second place with $145 billion. Increasing government Sukuk issuance supported by more lenient entry rules and deepening capital markets could boost foreign investment. Mergers and acquisitions across the region are also accelerating the shift to Islamic finance.

#Russia’s Sberbank to set up office in Abu Dhabi, exploring opportunities with Mubadala including in Islamic finance

Russian state-owned Sberbank will establish a presence in Abu Dhabi by the end of the year. Sberbank has also signed an agreement with Abu Dhabi sovereign investor Mubadala Investment Company. The agreement covers cooperation in areas including co-investments, debt and equity financing, long-term financing of Mubadala projects in Russia and other territories. It also includes the potential cooperation and investments in a broad range of areas including Islamic finance, artificial intelligence, cybersecurity, life sciences, venture capital, telemedicine and education. The bank is new to Islamic finance. In August it announced that it had structured a trade finance deal, its first-ever, with the International Islamic Trade Finance Corporation (ITFC).

Chimera S&P UAE Sharia ETF adds three new companies listed on DFM, ADX

Amanat Holdings, Aldar Properties, and Abu Dhabi National Oil Company for Distribution (ADNOC Distribution) were added to the S&P UAE Domestic Shariah Liquid 35/20 Capped Index. In August the ADX and DFM listed Chimera Capital’s Exchange Traded Fund (ETF), designed to replicate the S&P UAE Domestic Shariah Liquid 35/20 Capped Index which tracks the performance of UAE-based Shariah-compliant liquid equities.

Saudi Re receives Sharia certification from Shariyah Review Bureau

Saudi Reinsurance Company (Saudi Re) announced receiving the Sharia certificate for its offerings from Shariyah Review Bureau (SRB). With a solid financial base of total assets SAR 2.9 billion and an A3 rating by Moody's, Saudi Re is eyeing opportunities to strengthen its presence in its target markets in the Kingdom, the Middle East, Asia and Africa. CEO Fahad Al-Hesni said that Saudi Re has identified Environmental, Social and Governance (ESG) objectives from investors perspective, among which Sharia compliance was emphasized as a key factor in reflecting the responsible conduct. SRB apply various Sharia supervisory actions like reviews, investment screening, interactive consultations, Sharia Board administration and periodic Sharia audits.

KFH–Bahrain launches a first-of-its-kind Islamic Securitization Program

KFH-Bahrain launched a first-of-its-kind Shari'a compliant Securitization Program which offers a series of Mudaraba Sukuk under a trust structure. Under the program, sukuk will be issued against a select pool of financing portfolios, where the sukuk holders become the ultimate beneficiaries of the financing portfolio. The program can also be used for non-KFH-Bahrain financing portfolios, where the Bank acts as an arranger. Mr. Rashid Alkhan, Head of Wealth Management says the program provides an opportunity for clients to diversify their portfolio allocation strategy. The program will increase market activity and financial institution's ability to finance housing units in the Kingdom of Bahrain.

#Egypt signs $2bn conventional, Islamic facility to finance budget deficit

Egypt’s Ministry of Finance has signed the first conventional and Islamic financing facility, worth $2bn, to finance the state’s budget deficit. The facility was closed by Emirates NBD Capital Limited, and First Abu Dhabi Bank (FAB) as the transaction’s global coordinators, mandated lead arrangers, and book runners. The main authorised regulators and the offering managers include Mashreq Bank, ABC Islamic Bank, British Standard Chartered Bank, Islamic HSBC, the Arab Banking Corporation (ABC), and the Japanese Sumitomo Mitsui Banking Corporation.

Kenya: State Urged to Expand Sharia Compliance Loans to Muslims

As the coronavirus pandemic continues to disrupt businesses in Kenya, the Muslim community has been urged to take advantage of financial institutions offering low bank charges. Islamic finance expert Khalfan Abdallah has urged the government to rethink how to accommodate Muslims in various financial support programmes such as Youth and Women Fund. Mr Abdallah said the government should borrow a leaf from Momentum Credit Micro Finance which has started offering Sharia compliance loans to Muslims using logbooks as collateral. He urged the Muslim business community who are affected by Covid-19 pandemic to take advantage of Momentum Sahih products.

Moody's - Structural features underpin Malaysian Islamic banks' resilience against coronavirus fallout

According to Moody’s Investors Service, concentration on retail financing and other structural features will help Islamic banks safeguard against a deterioration in asset quality and profitability. Islamic banks have sufficient loss buffers against financial stress, with their funding and liquidity remaining stable. The seven largest Islamic banks in Malaysia, five of which are subsidiaries of domestic banking groups with conventional operations, have a heavy concentration on retail financing, which is less vulnerable to an economic downturn. In addition, Malaysian banks generally have prudent underwriting practices for retail financing, which adds to their asset quality.

#UAE's first ETF tracking Sharia-compliant index lists on UAE markets

The UAE's first exchange traded fund tracking a Sharia-compliant index began trading on the Abu Dhabi Securities Exchange and the Dubai Financial Market. Bourses in the the region are ramping up efforts to diversify their product offerings to attract more foreign direct investment. Chimera Capital listed its Chimera S&P UAE Shariah ETF, which is designed to replicate the S&P UAE Domestic Shariah Liquid 35/20 Capped Index. The Chimera S&P UAE Shariah ETF is structured and built by S&P and monitored by a Shariah board that meets regularly to review and re-balance the index quarterly. Currently the index has ten securities across the two UAE markets. The fund has a total market capitalisation of Dh234 billion and assets under management of Dh934,839.

State urged to expand sharia compliance loans to Muslims

As coronavirus pandemic continues to disrupt businesses in Kenya, the Muslim community has been urged to take advantage of financial institutions offering low bank charges to jump-start their businesses. Islamic finance expert Khalfan Abdallah has urged the government to rethink how to accommodate Muslims in various financial support programmes such as Youth and Women Fund. Mr. Abdallah said the government should borrow a leaf from Momentum Credit Micro Finance which has started offering Sharia compliance loans to Muslims using logbooks as collateral. The official said to bail out Muslims during these hard times, such affordable credit facilities which are sharia compliance are required.

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