IslamicFinance.de

A U.S. judge Tuesday approved Arcapita Bank B.S.C.'s plan to gradually liquidate itself in a process that conforms with Islamic Shariah law, which generally prohibits borrowing money with interest. The Bahrain-based investment firm entered bankruptcy protection last year with a goal of restructuring itself but ended up with a plan to orderly liquidate its private-equity investments. The modified proposal solved several concerns from creditors, including creating a new entity that will retain the firm’s management, and setting a minimum valuation for the company’s remaining assets. Arcapita manages infrastructure, real-estate, private-equity and venture-capital investments that are compliant with Shariah.

In Tunisia, the development of Islamic banking and Islamic insurance primarily depends on the introduction of a law that is more in line with market needs and expectations. Still, Mahfoudh Barouni, an expert in banking and finance, believes that the imperfections of the existing law have not so far hindered the smooth development of Islamic finance. In the past, there were already laws governing the sector that had been drafted according to market needs, but this legislation did not actually govern the Islamic finance sector. Currently, there are texts that legislate Islamic finance and grant all Tunisians the freedom to choose between Western and Islamic finance. Speaking on the topic of Islamic insurance, the CEO of Zitouna Takaful, Makram Ben Sassi, recalled that this business has existed in Tunisia for 30 years. Yet, the real problem is that there is a lack of awareness and responsibility rooted in the mentality of Tunisians in general.

In India, there are only two fund houses, namely Tata MF and Taurus MF, which offer Shariah-compliant funds. Industry experts say that the major challenge in ethical funds is product awareness and its marginal market demand. These funds only cater to a particular section of society. Some experts also believe that the returns in Shariah funds are not very astonishing as compared to equity funds. Experts believe that creating awareness about these funds will help attract investors. Not only Muslims but also Hindu, Jain and other community might show interest after knowing the significance of these products, they added. The Taurus Ethical Fund was launched in 2009 and has benchmark of CNX 500 Shariah. The scheme has generated annualized returns of 20.97 percent since inception. The Tata Ethical Fund Plan A-G was launched in April 2001 and has given an annualized return of 21.36 percent. The benchmark of the fund is CNX 500 Shariah.

Islamic banks Al Khair and Khaleeji have set up a committee to study the feasibility of a merger, with any agreement subject to due diligence and approvals by shareholders and the regulator. Bank Al Khair, a Bahrain-based investment bank, expects its potential merger with local player Khaleeji Commercial Bank to help provide it with retail banking exposure and more stable revenues. A merger would create an entity with paid-up capital of about $500 million and assets in the range of $600 million to $1 billion. An independent firm is now finalising valuations for the two businesses. A deal would probably involve both cash and an exchange of shares. Bank Al Khair posted a first-quarter loss of $2.8 million, while Khaleeji had a profit of BD302,000.

Malaysia's BIMB Holdings Bhd has received approval from the country's central bank to begin talks with Lembaga Tabung Haji for the latter's 18.5 percent stake in Bank Islam, the country's oldest Islamic bank. BIMB, which presently owns 51 percent of Bank Islam, is also in the process of acquiring the 30.5 percent stake held by Dubai Financial Group. If it acquires both stakes, BIMB will control 100 percent of Bank Islam. Negotiations between BIMB and Lembaga Tabung Haji will be completed by the end of the year. BIMB's chief executive officer Johan Abdullah told reporters in May that the valuation of the Dubai stake was already determined, although a complete proposal had not been filed and the amount has not been disclosed.

Saudi Arabia’s General Authority of Civil Aviation hired three banks for a local-currency sukuk. The Saudi Arabian affiliate of HSBC Holdings Plc (HSBA), National Commercial Bank’s investment banking unit and Standard Chartered Plc will manage the sukuk sale. NCB Capital and Standard Chartered bid jointly for the mandate. It was not specified how much the authority sought to raise, neither was the timing of the sale. GACA said last year it plans to issue a second tranche of notes to fund an airport expansion in the Saudi capital, Riyadh. The company sold Islamic debt last year at 2.5 percent and used proceeds to finance an airport expansion in the Red Sea port city of Jeddah.

Arcapita Bank on Tuesday secured a New York bankruptcy judge’s approval of Chapter 11 reorganization plan, allowing it to exit bankruptcy, pay off its creditors and turn over its assets to a new entity that will manage and dispose of them over time. Sixteen months after it entered bankruptcy, the Bahraini investment bank sailed through a confirmation hearing before U.S. Bankruptcy Judge Sean H. Lane with substantial support from creditors and shareholders.

The Islamic Development Bank, in collaboration with the Abdul Latif Jameel Poverty Action Lab (J-PAL) of Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), USA organized a high-level training course on Impact Evaluation of Development Programs taking place at the IDB headquarters from 8 to 12 June 2013. The training program was delivered by renowned experts in the field. Impact evaluation seeks to respond to the growing demand of donors and beneficiaries for measurable results on development interventions carried out by development banking institutions around the world. The training supports IDB's drive to improve the quality of its interventions, and showcase results on the ground. The Islamic Solidarity Fund for Development (ISFD) coordinated the training program in collaboration with the Operations Policy and Services Department (OPSD) and the Group Operations Evaluation Department (GOED) of IDB.

A memo of Iran's Supreme National Security Council marked as “secret”, was obtained and distributed by the Iranian opposition movement “Green Wave”. The memo said Iran’s financial institutions are on the verge of bankruptcy and the country could lose control over the banking system. Moreover, it stated the collapse of the banking system will lead to a steep rise in unemployment and inflation. The letter, addressed to the Central Bank of Iran (CBI), provided a bullet-point description of the economic crisis. It called for significant restrictions on the public's withdrawal of deposits from Banks. It also urged additional restrictions on taking foreign currency out of the country. The council also issued operational measures to combat the country's economic crisis. These measures include the deployment of security forces around banks, money-changing agencies, and ATM's and the drafting of an emergency plan to combat any potential storming of the banks by the public.

At the 7th IRU Euro-Asian Road Transport Conference, the IRU, the Islamic Development Bank (IDB) and the Arab Union of Land Transport (AULT) unveiled the results of their 18-month joint project, aimed at achieving more trade and profitability, safer roads and faster border control procedures to help the economic integration of the Arab world at regional and global level. The project revolved around three main components: the development of professional training, a Truck Accident Causation Feasibility Study, and the implementation of a road transport facilitation strategy. An appropriate legal framework to effectively facilitate road transport is a prerequisite, as well as the removal of non-physical barriers, such as customs procedures formalities. The development of manager and driver professional training at the international standards was also identifies as key to effectively increase the industry's efficiency and safety.

Chairman of the Islamic Development Bank (IDB) Ahmed Mohamed Ali said that the group is expected to sign, on Thursday, a strategic co-operation agreement with Tunisia. This agreement will reportedly open new co-operation prospects between Tunisia and several African countries, to which Tunisia could provide assistance in several sectors, whether public or private. An IDB delegation will take part in "Tunisia's Forum on Investment," on June 13-14. Moreover, IDB expressed its will to strengthen relations with Zitouna Bank, the first Islamic bank in Tunisia. Besides, Mr. Mohamed Ali pointed out that IDB is ready to contribute to the support and funding of the micro enterprises' programme, as part of supporting Tunisia's efforts in fighting against poverty.

With strong support from a government dominated by the Ennahda party, Islamic finance has become an El Dorado of sorts for Tunisia’s financial establishments. And this despite the fact the constituent parliament hasn't yet adopted the least regulation for such operations which were taboo during the days of Zine El Abidine Ben Ali. An affiliate of the state-owned Banque de l'Habitat (BH), Assurances Salim, is poised to break into the market for Islamic insurance and re-insurance. In the works since last year, the operation will lead to the creation of Attakafoulia, a limited liability company with an initial registered capital of €5 million.

In the possible merger between Malaysia Building Society Bhd (MBSB) and RHB Capital Bhd (RHBCap), MBSB president and chief executive officer Datuk Ahmad Zaini Othman said MBSB is capable of taking over RHB Islamic. MBSB itself has more than RM30 billion in assets a shareholders' fund of more than RM2 billion and a market capitalisation of RM5 billion on Bursa Malaysia. One option for MBSB is therefore to take over RHB Islamic's RM4 billion assets. Employees Provident Fund (EPF) chief executive officer Datuk Shahril Ridza Ridzuan had said last month that it will let RHBCap and MBSB decide on possible merger plans. The EPF holds a 44.84 per cent stake in RHBCap and 65.5 per cent share in MBSB. Meanwhile, MBSB chairman Tan Sri Abdul Halim Ali said the board of directors is unaware of any plans, is not in talks and has not received any proposals by the shareholders to merge with RHBCap.

ABOUT YPP:

The Young Professionals Program (YPP) is the strategic talent pipeline for the professional career in the Islamic Development Bank (IDB) Group. The Program is designed for outstanding young graduates who can significantly help the IDB Group to carry out its mission and attain its objectives.

This Program enables each Young Professional (YP) to receive extensive exposure and experience of the IDB Group’s various activities through job rotations in different departments. Participants will initially spend two weeks Orientation stage in HRMD. Then, 27 months in Foundation stage which will be split into three rotations of 9 months each in IDB Group departments.

Participants will also benefit from a coaching/mentoring arrangement and a wide range of relevant training and developmental opportunities.

Upon successful program completion, the participant will gradually climb up the professional grades in the IDB Group

[...]

The headquarters of the General Secretariat of the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation in Jeddah hosts, on 10–11 June 2013, a workshop entitled: "Humanitarian Action in Today’s World: reality and challenges in the context of Islamic jurisprudence and international humanitarian law". This workshop is attended by scholars and experts of Islamic jurisprudence and international humanitarian law, all together more than 20 organisations and 80 participants. It covers topics relating to the rights of victims of armed conflicts and the protection of humanitarian workers. It also features specific presentations on experiences and practices in the area of protection. The workshop aims to provide knowledge-based assistance to those working in the humanitarian field, develop their skills, and promote their awareness and knowledge of the principles of humanitarian action in light of Islamic jurisprudence and international humanitarian law.

Speaking at the Middle East Investment Conference in Dubai, Ibrahim Warde, adjunct professor at Tufts University in the United States and a noted author on Islamic finance, argued that since the 1990s Islamic finance has gained much more international acceptability but that it continues to grapple with the fundamental form-versus-substance debate. With the current size of the Islamic finance market at over $1.3 trillion, Warde believes that it is not an exaggeration to say that in the world of finance, the fastest growing segment is Islamic finance.

Issues raised and discussed at length during “International Workshop on Zakat, Waqf and Islamic Microfinance” and the idea of “Strengthening Islamic Social Finance Sector” were presented by Arshad Ajmal, Vice President of Sahulat Microfinance Society, at a programme organised by Forum for Discussion on Economic Issues. The event is a joint forum of Sahulat and Radiance Viewsweekly which was held in the national capital on 26 May. Mr. Ajmal, who was the only person invited from India as a resource person on Islamic Microfinance, shared his experience which he gathered and the points he raised during the workshop. Another notable point discussed was whether an Islamic Microfinance institution should and can be treated as a banking institution. Moreover, it was pointed out that Islamic finance places itself heavily on debt instruments and less on equity instruments.

At the 4th Annual World Islamic Banking Conference: Asia Summit (WIBC Asia 2013) in Singapore, Bahrain based international standard-setting body the International Islamic Financial Market (IIFM) announced the launch of IIFM Inter-Bank Unrestricted Master Investment Wakalah Agreement. This global standard document is supplemented with an Operational Guidance Memorandum. It is developed to be used in the Islamic inter-bank market between financial institutions in order to manage their liquidity requirements. It is also aimed to minimise the over reliance on the use of the Commodity Murabaha in the inter-bank market transactions. The key main features of this Agreement is that the Investor, the Muwakkil, will appoint the Wakil as its Agent to invest its funds in a Shari’ah compliant manner in exchange for a fee.

Dubai World has sold one of its UK assets as part of its efforts to repay creditors. A unit of Toronto-based investment company Brookfield Asset Management has bought logistics warehouse developer Gazeley from Dubai World subsidiary Economic Zones World (EZW). However, they did not disclose the value of the transaction. Proceeds from the sale of Gazeley are expected to go towards the repayment of a $1.2 billion loan secured by associate firm JAFZA in June last year. EZW had pledged up to US$300 million for JAFZA from the proceeds raised by the Gazeley sale, and should the sale be completed, funds will be used to part-repay the bank facility. The sale is the first major divestments of a foreign asset by Dubai World since it agreed on a debt deal with creditors in 2011. The restructuring agreement promised full repayment to creditors through a series of disposals of overseas assets.

Citi Bahrain and the Bahrain Association of Banks (BAB) recently organized a 'Women in Banking' roundtable that determined that there is a need to establish a forum to support and empower women working in Bahrain's banking and financial sector. Female banking executives from more than 15 institutions attended the seminar. Speakers pointed out the role of women in the banking and financial sector, which is the largest single employer in the Kingdom, with women making up 37 percent of its workforce. Challenges facing women in the financial sector like the prevailing attitude towards women, an existing male-dominated workforce, the organizational culture and a lack of female role models were discussed. The event was closed with a suggestion to form a working group to formulate recommendations on how best to further the development of women in the banking sector.