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Islamic Corporation for the Development of the Private Sector (ICD) CEO Khaled Al-Aboodi speaks out on the work he does around the world to bolster the private sector in accordance with the principles of Shari’ah law, and harnessing the Islamic economy’s vast potential. He says that all of the Halal activities need to be focused and there needs to be an established link between Islamic finance and the Halal activities, and make sure they are served by Islamic finance. The more links, the more demand there will be for Islamic finance, so these forces will work together to make both bigger. However, there are also weak links, like he lack of unified regulation for Islamic finance.

Bonki Rushdi Tojikiston (BRT), based in Tajikistan, has signed an advisory services agreement with the Islamic Corporation for the Development of the Private Sector (ICD) to process and support its conversion into Shariah-compliant operations. The agreement is designed to develop an advisory process to effectively deliver full conversion by also identifying challenges and addressing impediments. The ICD will dedicate seven key teams across the full conversion process in areas of project management, Shariah compliance, treasury, accounting, human resources, information technology, marketing and legal framework. BRT is hoping to become the leading Shariah-compliant platform in Tajikistan.

ICBC Financial Leasing signed a landmark collaboration agreement with the Islamic Corporation for the Development of the Private Sector (ICD). The two entities will work together across multiple lines to develop Islamic capabilities and opportunities and assist economic evolution across ICD member countries: including the provision of financing and banking services such as Ijarah, placement of funds, lines of finance and liquidity management; as well as technical assistance, training and expertise. The parties also plan to encourage and implement co-financing, club deal and syndication projects for eligible private sector projects.

The Islamic Corporation for the Development of the Private Sector (ICD), the IDB's private sector arm, will cooperate with ICBC Financial Leasing, a wholly owned subsidiary of ICBC, China's biggest lender by assets. China's population of Muslims is estimated at over 20 million but there is very little if any Islamic finance activity inside the country, and it is not clear whether the industry will develop the legal and regulatory backing to develop there. However, some Chinese companies see Islamic finance as a way to expand their trade and investment in fast-growing Muslim majority markets such as the Gulf and southeast Asia, and to access pools of capital there.

The Islamic Corporation for the Development of the Private Sector (ICD) is considering options for support of the private sector in Azerbaijan. According to the Ministry of Economy and Industry, Minister Shahin Mustafayev has received Khaled Mohammad Al Aboodi, ICD CEO. During the meeting, the Minister proposed to cooperate in the industrial and agricultural sector including the project of the Sumgait Chemical Industrial Park and establishment of agricultural parks in Azerbaijan, the Ministry said. Aboodi expressed his satisfaction with the cooperation with Azerbaijan and proposed to expand it.

The Islamic Corporation for the Development of the Private Sector (ICD) will lead manage a 300 billion CFA franc ($480 million) Islamic bond programme for Ivory Coast. The programme will issue Ivory Coast's first sovereign sukuk in order to finance development projects. It will be conducted in two equal phases of 150 billion CFA francs and extend from 2015 to 2020, the ICD said in a statement. As lead manager, the ICD will structure the sukuk programme, appoint and coordinate other consultants, liaise with government officials and oversee the entire process of the offer, it said. Senegal and South Africa issued their first sukuk last year, while Niger's government plans to establish an Islamic bond programme and Nigeria has been considering an issue.

Ivory Coast has signed an agreement for Islamic-finance bond as it seeks to raise money for infrastructure. The Islamic Corp. for the Development of the Private Sector (ICD) will oversee the 300 billion-CFA franc ($490 million) sukuk. The program will be implemented in two tranches, each worth 150 billion francs, between this year and 2020. The sukuk will be an “alternative financing means for developmental” projects, Ivorian Minister Delegate to Finance Niale Kaba said, without giving details on what the funds will be used for. Ivory Coast joins a growing number of sub-Saharan African nations tapping Islamic finance debt markets seeking cash for development projects.

Jordan chose the Islamic Corporation for the Development of the Private Sector (ICD), an arm of the Jeddah-based Islamic Development Bank, to support the country's debut sovereign issue of sukuk. The ICD will provide "transaction technical support" for the domestic issue of Jordanian dinar-denominated sukuk, which is expected this year. The sukuk will be used to absorb excess liquidity held by Jordan's Islamic banks, which is estimated to total 1.4 billion dinars ($2 billion). Khaled Al-Aboodi, chief executive of the ICD, said the issue would help to develop Jordan's capital market and provide an alternative to its Treasury bills for investment by Islamic banks.

Nigeria and Ivory Coast have begun negotiations with the Islamic Corporation for the Development of the Private Sector (ICD) for sukuk issuance. According to the ICD head Khaled Al-Aboodi, the two countries are looking to emulate Senegal’s successful move into the market for Islamic bonds. Al-Aboodi added that they were exploring with Nigeria and Ivory Coast. The issuance by Senegal has opened up the whole region, he said. The ICD hopes to support at least two countries in 2015 to issue a sukuk. Meanwhile, Niger has signed up for a sukuk programme worth 150 billion CFA francs ($260 million), although the timing has yet to be determined.

Nigeria and Ivory Coast are looking to emulate Senegal's successful move into the market for Islamic bonds, Khaled Al-Aboodi, head of the Islamic Corporation for the Development of the Private Sector (ICD), said. The ICD helped arrange Senegal's debut 100 billion CFA francs ($208 million) Islamic bond, also known as sukuk, last June. Al-Aboodi added they were exploring with Nigeria and Ivory Coast. The issuance by Senegal has opened up the whole region, he said. The ICD hopes to support at least two countries in 2015 to issue a sukuk. Meanwhile, Niger has signed up for a sukuk programme worth 150 billion CFA francs ($260 million), although the timing has yet to be determined.

Chief Executive of Islamic Corporation for the Development of the Private Sector (ICD), Khaled Al-Aboodi, says Nigeria and Ivory Coast are looking to emulate Senegal's successful move into the market for sukuk. Senegal, meanwhile, is discussing another sukuk after the ICD helped it arranged its debut $208 million Islamic bond last June. Nigeria's neighbour Niger has signed up for a sukuk programme worth 150 billion CFA francs ($260 million), although the timing has yet to be determined. Al-Aboodi said they hoped to issue the sukuk before the end of the year, adding that the tenor depended on its structure and investor appetite.

The Islamic Corporation for the Development of the Private Sector (ICD) and the African Export-Import Bank (Afreximbank) have signed an agreement under which they will cooperate in the development of the private sector in ICD member countries in Africa. However, Uganda is the only member ICD country in the East African Community. According to the agreement, ICD and Afreximbank will share information on projects and business opportunities in Africa and on participation in the arrangement of syndications or investment in funds. The two will also cooperate in structuring sukuk/debt capital market transaction opportunities, co-invest in Islamic leasing companies and support local financial institutions in Africa.

The Islamic Corporation for the Development of the Private Sector (ICD) has signed an agreement with the African Export-Import Bank (Afreximbank) to cooperate in the development of the private sector in ICD member countries in Africa. ICD and Afreximbank will share information on projects and business opportunities in Africa and on participation in the arrangement of syndications or investment in funds. They will also cooperate in structuring sukuk/debt capital market transaction opportunities, co-invest in Islamic leasing companies and support local financial institutions in Africa through the raising of capital via lines of finances. In addition, they will exchange information aimed at upgrading knowledge and expertise about Islamic finance, among others.

Niger's government will establish an Islamic bond programme worth 150 billion CFA francs ($260 million), permitting its first issue of sukuk, with assistance from the private sector arm of the Islamic Development Bank. Niger's sukuk would be issued over the next five years in two separate transactions worth 75 billion CFA francs each, the Islamic Corporation for the Development of the Private Sector (ICD) said. The government already has a number of projects that could be financed through sukuk, Amadou Boubacar Cisse, Niger's planning minister, was quoted. Niger would follow Senegal and South Africa, which issued sovereign sukuk for the first time last year; Ivory Coast has been considering a 200 billion CFA franc sukuk issue. Tunisia plans a debut sukuk issue in the third quarter of this year.

Islamic Corporation for the Development of the Private Sector (ICD) has signed a new agreement with Azerbaijani microfinance institution VisionFund AzerCredit (VF AzerCredit). The objective is to provide advisory services with the aim of developing a comprehensive Shariah-compliant microfinance solution for the country. Vision Fund AzerCredit's work emphasizes the provision of loans to small and micro entrepreneurs in rural areas, especially those remote regions which remain largely unbanked, through 45 outlets in 38 districts. With more than 80,000 borrowers and a portfolio of over US$83 million, the group is a leader in the Azerbaijani microfinance field. The VF AzerCredit agreement represents the latest step in the ICD's program to support and develop the growth of the private sector in Azerbaijan.

The Islamic Corporation for the Development of the Private Sector (ICD) has signed a new agreement with Azerbaijani microfinance institution Vision Fund AzerCredit. The objective is to provide advisory services with the aim of developing a comprehensive Shari’ah-compliant microfinance solution for the country. VF AzerCredit's work emphasizes the provision of loans to small and micro entrepreneurs in rural areas, especially those remote regions which remain largely unbanked, through 45 outlets in 38 districts. With more than 80,000 borrowers and a portfolio of over $83 million, the group is a leader in the Azerbaijani microfinance field.

Turkey's Bank Asya has signed a deal to sell its 40 percent stake in Tamweel Africa Holding to the Islamic Corporation for the Development of the Private Sector (ICD) for 31.8 million euro ($37.7 million). Bank Asya suffered a run on deposits last year as it became embroiled in a power struggle between now President Tayyip Erdogan and his former ally-turned-foe Fethullah Gulen, the Islamic cleric whose sympathisers founded the bank.

The private sector arm of the Jeddah-based Islamic Development Bank plans to tap Islamic capital markets to raise as much as $1.2 billion in long-term funds during its current financial year, its chief executive Khaled Al-Aboodi said. The Islamic Corporation for the Development of the Private Sector (ICD) will also explore a capital increase as it expands its economic development activities, with a proposal to be presented to shareholders in June 2015. Fitch Ratings has assigned an AA credit rating to the ICD, which has a low level of leverage but which is expected to grow as the institution increases its lending activities. The ICD will consider both syndicated Islamic loans as well as issuance of sukuk, or Islamic bonds, Al-Aboodi added.

This report is an annual barometer of the health and development of the Islamic Finance industry worldwide, based on the ICD Thomson Reuters Islamic Finance Development Indicator.

The Islamic Corporation for the Development of the Private Sector ( ICD ) and Perbadanan Tabung Amanah Islam Brunei (Perbadanan TAIB), signed a memorandum of understanding to explore the launch of a Shariah- compliant leasing/Ijarah business in Brunei Darussalam. The Partnership plans a number of other COLLABORATIONS with the support of the Ijarah Management Company (IMC). Established in November 2011, IMC has successfully managed to set up and operate more than eight leasing companies globally including CIS, MENA and West Africa countries.