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Takaful Emarat and Reliance Asset Management (Malaysia) (RAMMY), the Islamic asset management arm of Reliance Capital Asset Management, India (RCAM), became partners. Ian Lancaster, Chief Executive Officer, is the one that gave the statement.
Takaful Emarat will offer its customers three Shari’ah-compliant funds managed by RAMMY - WSF Reliance Global Shariah Growth Fund, Reliance India Shariah Growth Fund, and the proposed Shariah Equity Growth fund investing into China and India.

In order for firms from the UAE to enter the largest economy in Europe, a mission was launched in partnership with the German Emirati Joint Council for Industry and Commerce (AHK).
Leading firms from the UAE's sector followed this mission with the purpose to connect the participants with potential opportunities in Germany and to show he high level of expertise in the area in Dubai.

Reims Management School (RMS) will launch a pioneering certificate program in Islamic Banking and Finance, that will be held in partnership with the International Centre for Education in Islamic Finance (INCEIF) in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.
The unicity of the programm consists in the fact that it offers both current students on the MSc in Finance and International Banking program, as well as executives, the possibility to study the Islamic banking system and capital markets.

TELEKOM MALAYSIA BHD posessed on the 25th April RM150 million of Islamic commercial papers (ICP).
It appears that the ICPs were the first tranche under the proposed RM2 billion ICP programnme and Islamic medium term notes.

Because of the protests that are going on for three months now, Yemen may cancel the sale of a 25 billion-rial ($117 million) Islamic bond. This will happen if banks do not have enough liquidity following customer withdrawals during the unrest.
The demonstrators want the designation of President Ali Abdullah Saleh.

An executive master’s degree program for Islamic finance management at Effat University was started by Prince Turki Al-Faisal, a member of university’s board of trustees, in order to underline the success achieved by Islamic banking in overcoming the global economic crisis.
Islamic finance management is the first program under the newly established deanship for higher studies and scientific research at the university.

1Malaysia Micro Protection Plan (1MMPP) has been created to intensify accessibility and affordability of insurance and takaful protection for Malaysians.
It appears that the plan was mainly for small businesses, micro enterprises and individuals seeking accessible and affordable financial protection in managing unexpected events such as death, illnesses, accidents, fires and loss of property.
Four options will be provided: life insurance, family takaful, general insurance and general takaful.

Demand for the Kingdom of Bahrain sovereign debt, which the Central Bank manages on behalf of the Ministry of Finance, are still at low levels.
Demand for debt with longer maturities remained strong. The CBB was capable o issue 12 month Government Treasury Bills at a coverage of 211%.

Bloomberg Professional initiated in february the Bloomberg Islamic Finance Platform (ISLM), that is described to be more connected to the community and to provide analytical tools to maximise investment performance in the rapidly growing market for Shari'ah-compliant products and services.
Bloomberg will also launch, together with the Association of Islamic Banking Institutions Malaysia (AIBIM), a Malaysian Ringgit (MYR) sukuk index that supplies a benchmark for MYR sovereign sukuk investments.

Abu Dhabi Islamic Bank launched a capital protected Soft Commodity Note that provides an opportunity for investors to invest in this Murabaha based Note, the profit of which is determined by the prices performance of cotton, corn and sugar.
This is a opportunity given to investors to a return based on the expected performance of the three commodities. Their price depends on growth in population and buying power of the emerging economies of China, India, Asia and Africa.

The conversion of PT Bank Ina Perdana of Indonesia into a syariah-compliance bank is expected by Affin Holdings Bhd to be completed in two years.

In order to extend Philippines, the only bank from this country has been placed on the auction block.
As part of its five-year rehabilitation program, interested parties will be given a 49 percent stake Al Amanah Islamic and Investment Bank of the Philippines (Amanah Islamic Bank).
The sale will help Islamic banking to enter expertise and technology.

Dubai, United Arab Emirates, March 23, 2011 – The Muslim Philanthropy Award winners were announced at the 4th annual banquet of the World Congress of Muslim Philanthropists in Dubai, UAE.

Every year, the Muslim Philanthropy Award honors an individual, a grantmaking institution and a corporation for their distinguished contribution to the field of philanthropy.

The Muslim Philanthropy Awards for 2011 were awarded to H.R.H. Prince Talal bin Abdul Aziz Al Saud (Personality) for demonstrating outstanding civic and charitable responsibility; Islamic Development Bank, Saudi Arabia (Grantmaker) for showing long-standing commitment to economic empowerment, human dignity, and institutional building; and Abraaj Capital, UAE (Corporation) for demonstrating longstanding leadership in advancing strategic philanthropy, creativity in responding to societal problems, and having significant positive impact on corporate giving in MENA region.

The Malaysian Islamic banking system (MIBS) acomplished a very important approval by the resilience of the industry and its sustained recovery. Bank Negara Malaysia's 2010 Financial Stability Report shows that the MIBS were still resilient throughout 2010 supported by high capitalization.
Islamic banking institutions were very profitable having a fix income and improving their assets. This profitability allowed the bank to Islamic banking institutions to provide competitive returns to their depositors.

The formation of a single board of trustee including all donors and the establishment was advised to the Boards of Trustees of the Funds (BTF) of the Organisation of Islamic Conference (OIC) in Bosnia and Herzegovina, Sierra Leone, Afghanistan and Niger.
Sheikh Abdul Aziz bin Abdul Rahman Al Thani, Chairman of the OIC BTF, held the OIC BTF meeting.

The key challenges and opportunities addressed in the Islamic Wealth Management Report are:

•Managing the Islamic wealth cycle through the entire process of wealth acquisition, preservation and distribution and achieving the required balance between spiritual and worldly obligations.
•Understanding the primary issues facing Waqf donors despite the strong growth drivers in this market: poor performance is due in part to the shortage of professionals leading to low quality asset management and lack of transparency.
•Considering the suitability of the Swiss private banking family office structure as a wealth management tool to ensure effective Islamic governance.
•Addressing the challenges facing Islamic mutual funds to achieve growth and performance.
•Recommending standardisation, education and diversification of Sukuk in order to increase the supply of products and the liquidity of the market.
•Analysing Islamic equity and indices performance over the last year to illustrate that diversification remains key for investment without compromising Islamic principles.

At the Islamic economics and finance that will be held in Doha on Dec. 18-20, 2011 with the main theme “Sustainable growth and inclusive economic development from an Islamic Perspective” are invited all papers.
The organizers of the conference are: the Qatar Foundation’s Faculty of Islamic Studies (QFIS), the Islamic Research and Training Institute (IRTI), the International Association for Islamic Economics, and the Statistical, Economic & Social Research & Training Center for Islamic Countries (SESRIC).

Socially responsible investing (SRI) report about an investment strategy that seeks to maximise both financial return and social good.
The most prefered corporate practices are environmental stewardship, consumer protection, human rights, and diversity.
The rise of SRI funds
The European SRI market value was estimated at US$7trillion at 2010 end-year. The prognose is that it will change magnitude to US$26.5 trillion by 2015.
SRI in Malaysia
With continuous progress in business sustainability practices in Malaysia, the request for SRI funds is growing.

In order to pay Iran for the import of oil, India looks at the possibility of opening ccounts in banks like Dubai-based Noor Islamic Bank. National Iranian Oil Co (NIOC) is also looking at opening an account in a UAE or Turkey based bank to receive direct money transfer from oil companies.

Malaysia wants to sell RM30 billion (S$12.48 billion) of local-currency Islamic bonds under a programme. The purpose is to help finance a mass-transit railway in Kuala Lumpur.
There is a possibility that domestic sources will subscribe to the sukuk issuance.
the estimation of the government on the cost of the network and rolling stock is RM48 billion. The railway will cover a 20-kilometre radius around Kuala Lumpur's city centre and carry two million passengers a day.