IslamicFinance.de

Syarikat Takaful Malaysia Bhd expects contributions in 2015 to grow faster than the industry average of 11 per cent, said Group Managing Director Datuk Seri Mohamed Hassan Kamil. He said the business trend and success rate in securing new customers look positive compared to the previous year especially in the Employee Benefit business, which has seen a shift from conventional to Takaful insurance. The group expects about 20 per cent growth in contributions for employee benefit from RM300 million registered last year, and aims to secure up to 600,000 policy holders, up from 400,000 recorded in 2014, said Mohamed Hasan. For the financial year ended Dec 31, 2014, the group's profit after tax grew three per cent to RM138.7 million from RM134.4 million in the previous year, while revenue decreased by 3.5 per cent to RM1.65 billion.

With China showing growing interest to participate in the global Islamic finance market, the country is working on establishing hubs for Shariah banking within its borders. The first such centre to emerge will undoubtedly be the southern metropolis of Hong Kong which is very serious about becoming an East Asian hub for Islamic finance with a side glance on its regional competitor Singapore. But many eyes are also on China's majority-Muslim autonomous province of Ningxia in the northwestern part of the country. Ningxia plans a $1.5bn debut sukuk sale as early as this year. The deal, managed by Nanchang-based AVIC Securities, will be China's first local-government overseas bond issuance and the first Islamic bond issued by a province.

Kuwait Finance House (KFH) is restructuring activities ahead of a planned divestment by its largest shareholder, the Kuwait Investment Authority (KIA). Last week, KFH said it had hired Credit Suisse to advise on its options, including the potential sale of a Malaysia unit launched in 2005 that serves as a hub for southeast Asia. KFH did not give further details. A shift away from Malaysia, where KFH holds a valuable licence but lacks scale, would help it focus on Kuveyt Turk, the largest Islamic bank in Turkey with over 500 branches. Kuveyt Turk, 62 per cent owned by KFH, is in expansion mode: It plans to launch Germany's first full-fledged Islamic bank in July as a gateway to Europe.

Following the G20 meeting of agriculture ministers in Turkey, the ministers said that the pressures on natural resources and biodiversity and the impacts of climate change have produced a need for a rise in productivity while at the same time moving towards food systems that are more sustainable. The ministers gave full backing to the G20 Food Security and Nutrition Framework that was agreed last year. Sustainable food systems should promote sustainable increases in productivity and production, use natural resources more efficiently, increase resilience and help address climate change in accordance with the UNFCCC. Sustainable food systems can help promote economic and social opportunities through quality jobs especially for smallholders, rural women and youth.

More than 200 angel investors, start-ups from the MENA region and members of the local media gathered in Bahrain for the commencement of the second MENA Angel Investors Summit 2015. The event was organised by Tenmou, Bahrain's First 'Business Angels, in strategic partnership with the Economic Development Board (EDB). 45 fast-growth start-ups from Bahrain, Saudi Arabia, UAE, Lebanon, Morocco, Palestine, Egypt, and Jordan presented their business pitches to the angel investors in attendance in hopes of procuring more funding to take their businesses to the next level. The highlight of the summit was the launch of the region's first networking association, the MENA Angel Investor Network (MAIN).

Saudi Arabia's Capital Market Authority (CMA) is studying plans to introduce rules governing the listing of real estate investment trusts (REITs). The regulator has approached market participants in recent weeks about forming a panel which will report to it on areas including how REITs work in international markets. The CMA was not available to comment. Given the early stage of the plans and the slow pace of regulatory progress in the kingdom, it is likely to take some time to draw up even draft rules for REITs, securities which trade on stock markets but which invest directly in properties and distribute profits as dividends.

Future Bank, a Bahrain-based Iranian bank, has appealed a recent decision by Bahrain's central bank (CBB) to place it along with another Iranian financial institution into administration under the pretext of protecting the rights of depositors and policyholders. CBB in the case of the Future Bank and the Iran Insurance Company will have the power to continue or to temporary suspend their operations, the power to suspend or limit the discharge of their financial obligations, and the power to conclude deals on behalf of them. The Future Bank was established in 2004 through a joint venture between Bank Saderat Iran, Bank Melli Iran, and Ahli United Bank (AUB) Bahrain.

To contribute effectively to the financing of microfinance projects at the grassroots level, the CBOS has signed microfinance contracts with 15 microfinance institutions from the first installment with 50% of the loan of the Arab Fund for Economic and Social Development (AFESD) of a total $ 50 million used mostly for funding microfinance projects. This loan will be used in the rural projects that contribute to combat poverty among the economically active poor classes.The first phase will fund small and micro projects through 4 microfinance institutions providing funds for customers in the localities of Khartoum State and 11 other state institutions that provide finance for microfinance customers in most of the other States of the Sudan.

Al Hilal MENA Fund (AHMF); Sharia Compliant, open-ended fund, managed by ahlibank asset management has posted commendable returns of 12 per cent year to date, as on April 30, 2015. Al Hilal MENA Fund is the first and only Sharia Compliant fund sponsored and managed by a bank in Oman. The fund invests across listed equities and sukuks issued and tradable within the GCC region. The current investments represent geographical coverage spanning Oman, Qatar, United Arab Emirates (UAE) and Saudi Arabia. The diversified sector exposure constitutes investments into petrochemicals, fertilizer producers, industrial chemicals, oil and gas exploration, Islamic banking, takaful, real estate, telecom, consumer discretionary and industrial manufacturing.

State Bank of Pakistan informed that the amalgamation of the defunct KASB Bank into Bank Islami Pakistan Ltd has been implemented smoothly. As a result all the depositors which are over 150000 in number and have Rs 57 billion in deposits are free to operate their accounts. Many of them have already started operating their accounts and more than 1200 employees have continued their jobs, a statement of SBP said. An important issue is the notional value at which the defunct bank has been handed over to BankIslami. Following international practices, a notional value of Rs 1000 was set for the defunct bank. BankIslami has planned to gradually transfer the defunct bank's conventional banking operations into Shariah based operations.

After a slow start, there are signs Islamic finance is beginning to gain the crucial mass and legislative backing it needs in Africa. Amid a surge in sovereign debuts in the sukuk market last year, one region – perhaps unexpectedly – featured prominently: Africa. First to the market was Senegal, the biggest economy in sub-Saharan Africa with a majority Muslim population after Sudan. Its CFAFr100 billion ($200 million) debut last June was Africa’s biggest-ever sovereign sukuk, attracting both local and international buyers. South Africa followed in September with a $500 million 5.75-year deal that was only the third-ever sukuk issued by a non-Muslim majority country, according to Standard Bank, one of the lead managers.

BLME Holdings plc has announced the appointment of Michael Williams as interim CEO of BLME Holdings plc and of its main operating company, Bank of London and The Middle East plc (“BLME”) with effect from Wednesday 13th May. Michael will report directly to Adel Abdul Wahab Al-Majed, Non-executive Chairman of the Board of BLME Holdings plc. Michael is a qualified banker, previously Chief Executive Officer of the International Bank of Qatar in Doha and before this Chief Executive Officer of the National Bank of Fujairah, based in Dubai. His former roles include Managing Director of Nomura Bank International Plc, London and Managing Director of Barclays Global Services. Michael will stand down as Senior Independent Director to be replaced by Neil Holden.

Despite this global spread, mainland China remains a major market that Islamic finance has not yet reached. But this could be set to change in the coming years – and one province in particular is leading the way. Ningxia, in the north-west of China, is an autonomous region where 35% of the population is Muslim and there has recently been talk of establishing an Islamic Financial Centre there in the next five to seven years. In September 2014, Ningxia Halal Food International Trade Certification Centre that established in January 2008 became the first Halal certification body in China with government’s stamp of approval. Moreover, in recent years, trade between China and the Middle East has considerably increased.

The volume of Faisal Islamic Bank of Egypt’s (FAIT) business increased to LE52.8 bln at the end of April 2015, compared to LE47.9 bln in the same period last year, the bank announced. The increase marks a rise of 10.3% in comparison to last year. Additionally, the total assets of the bank increased by 9.8%, from LE47.4 bln in March 2014 to LE52 bln in April 2015. Meanwhile the bank’s net profits reached LE196.97 m in the first quarter of 2015, compared to EGP 172.3m during the same period in 2014. The bank’s capital is worth LE66.8bln, divided into 13.36 m shares at LE5 per share.

While the Takaful industry across the GCC is experiencing strong progress, development of a supervisory framework varies substantially between the constituent countries. The UAE, Bahrain and Oman — and the autonomous financial hubs of DIFC and QFC — have introduced regulations specifically for the Takaful market. Kuwait and Qatar (outside the QFC), do not have an explicit rule book for governing the market. Saudi Arabia has a common legislation applicable to both conventional and Takaful companies. The Kingdom prescribes the cooperative model for all insurance companies, which has a few variations from the Takaful model followed in other parts of the world.

The Thomson Reuters Global Sukuk Index is at 118.26569 points, down from 118.50812 at the end of last month but up from 115.79726 at the end of last year. The Thomson Reuters Investment Grade Sukuk Index is at 117.25281 against 117.54139 at end-April and 113.69014 at end-2014. Some of the sukuk in the pipeline are: Saudi British Bank plans to sell a riyal-denominated sukuk that will boost its capital reserves. Saudi Arabia's Najran Cement plans to meet fixed income investors starting on May 10 for a riyal-denominated sukuk issue. National Shipping Company of Saudi Arabia (Bahri) plans to make a debut sukuk issue worth up to 3.9 billion riyals ($1.04 billion) this quarter.

An elite group of Sajaya Young Ladies of Sharjah is participating in the GCC Girls Cultural and Social Forum, taking place in Manama, Bahrain, from May 5th to 11th, to discuss topics and issues that concern GCC girls. Four girls from Sajaya are participating in the one-week forum as part of a UAE delegation under the umbrella of the General Authority for Youth and Sports Welfare, where Sajaya girls will present paperwork on Sajaya organisation and entrepreneurship. Organised by Bahrain’s General Organisation for Youth and Sports, the forum brings together a range of girls and young women from the six GCC nations to share opinions and expertise and speak about women entrepreneurship in the GCC countries.

The rise of sukuk, driven by the growing influence of investors who want syariah-compliant investment and savings products, opens new opportunities in Islamic economies, says HSBC Bank Malaysia Bhd. In a statement, it said interest was strong in Gulf Cooperation Council member states as well as in growing economies such as Malaysia and Turkey. For those seeking finance, syariah-compliant debt offers access to the large pool of capital in oil-rich countries in the Middle East and South-East Asia. The bank said sukuk also had broad appeal, particularly in the Muslim world, where borrowers were attracted by the prospects of cross-border flows from the Gulf countries.

Al Hilal Takaful, the takaful insurance subsidiary of Al Hilal Bank, has signed a distribution agreement in Abu Dhabi with Euler Hermes, a trade credit insurance provider. The agreement was forged recently at Al Bahr Towers, Al Hilal Bank’s headquarters in Abu Dhabi, during a special ceremony attended by Euler Hermes’ Regional Board. The partnership will enable Al Hilal Bank’s Abu Dhabi customers to take advantage of a broad range of trade credit insurance solutions for the management of business-to-business trade receivables offered by Euler Hermes. Al Hilal Bank will leverage Euler Hermes’ offerings to help its corporate clients address local and global economic challenges and manage their trade receivables and worldwide expansion.

Ithmaar Bank, a Bahrain-based Islamic retail bank, has reported a net profit of $7.62 million for the first quarter of 2015, a 261 per cent increase over the $2.11m net profit reported for the same period last year. Net profit attributable to equity holders of the bank for the first quarter of 2015 was $2.64m, a 426pc increase over the $0.5m profit reported for the same period last year. The bank's operating income has increased by almost 46pc to $83.34m for the first quarter of 2015, from $57.13m for the same period last year. This increase is mainly due to overall revenue growth, with net income, before provisions for impairment and overseas taxation, for the period increasing 292pc to $34.4m.