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Nearly 300 asset managers, water infrastructure and energy sector executives attended the event ‘Water: Emerging Risks and Opportunities' in New York to learn about opportunities for investing in water and the growing water demands of the United States’ booming unconventional energy sector. The event was sponsored by Goldman Sachs, GE and the World Resources Institute. On the other hand, the Interfaith Center for Corporate Responsibility convened a roundtable on the obligations of companies to respect the human right to water. Seventy religious investors, major water-intensive companies, and grassroots activists came together to tackle the question of what companies can and should do to ensure their operations “do no harm” to water supplies of local communities. Investors at the Goldman event very well may be driving the green technologies that can help the industrial companies at the ICCR session clean up their acts. But the problem for companies is that in most places, water is so cheap that investing in these solutions can sometimes be hard to justify on a traditional ROI basis, if not on a moral one.

Shareholders are filing resolutions asking companies to disclose physical risks posed by climate change for the first time this proxy season. The resolutions include setting greenhouse gas emission reduction goals, publishing sustainability reports, pursuing energy efficiency, and disclosing information about hydraulic fracturing operations. Although shareholder resolutions on sustainability rarely receive a majority vote, they can still prompt companies to take action to avoid risk to their reputation or address investor concerns. Environmental and social resolutions accounted for more than 40 percent of all shareholder resolutions submitted in 2012, the largest proportion of those addresses corporate political spending.

Awqaf and Minors Affairs Foundation (AMAF), has launched an initiative to raise customer service levels and contribute to faster, more effective communication channels through a series of monthly open meetings between senior management and Foundation beneficiaries. The open meetings took place in the Foundation's headquarters since the beginning of January. Ahmed Hassan Nasser, Director of Investment Department met with beneficiaries on each Tuesday of the month, while Huda Al Mannai, Director of the Department of Minors, conducted meetings on Wednesdays.

The Pakistan Poverty Alleviation Fund (PPAF) has signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with Telenor Pakistan and Tameer Microfinance Bank (TMB) for extending financial services to poor and un-banked communities. Under the MoU, a pilot project is to be launched to extend financial services to select communities by establishing Easypaisa shops, which will provide services that include bill payments, money transfers, donations, international home transfers, withdrawals and deposits through mobile accounts. One Easypaisa shop will be set up in each PPAF community to cater to their banking needs. Once the pilot project is completed, it will be replicated nationwide, a press release stated.

Adib Alzamil has been elected as the new chairman of the board of directors of Jadwa Investment, suceeding Prince Faisal bin Salman. Alzamil is a senior member of the Zamil Group, where he is currently MD of finance and investments and serves on the board of directors and executive committee. He was MD of Zamil Industrial Investments Company from 1998 to 2004, and remains a member of its board of directors. He also serves on the boards of Sanabil Al-Saudia, Bank Albilad, Fajr Capital, Methanol Chemical Company, and Dana Gas. Alzamil holds a bachelor's degree in business administration from Portland State University.

RAM Ratings has received confirmation from the facility agent that Al-‘Aqar Capital fully redeemed all the outstanding Class A Islamic Medium-Term Notes (IMTN), Class B IMTN, Class C IMTN and Islamic Commercial Papers (ICP) under its MYR 300 million Sukuk Ijarah Programme (2008/2013). RAM has withdrawn the respective AAA, AA2, AAA(bg) and P1 ratings of Al-‘Aqar Capital’s Class A IMTN, Class B IMTN, Class C IMTN and ICP, and no longer has any rating obligation on the debt facility.

The Cabinet, under Prime Minister Hisham Qandil, stressed that the now-debated Sukuk is not an alternative to the other financing tools. The final blueprint of the Sukuk bill will be presented to the Cabinet next Wednesday 27/2/2013 after taking into consideration all remarks made by al-Azhar, the Central Bank of Egypt and investment associations. If approved, it will be referred to the Shura Council for endorsement on the same day. On the other hand, The Cabinet reviewed the security situation and urged protesters in Tahrir Square to allow the flow of traffic for the sake of citizens.

London-based Gatehouse Bank is participating in the youth mentoring initiative 'Mosaic' that seeks to inspire young people from deprived communities to realise their talents and potential. The seminar saw business leaders, including the CEO of Gatehouse Bank, Richard Thomas, sharing important insights and experiences on activities undertaken in 2012. According to a press release from Gatehouse Bank, Mosaic addresses the role that businesses can play in responding to social and environmental problems. Therefore, it directly reflects the business ethos of a socially responsible Shari’ah banking model.

Tunisia, the Arab world’s first democracy, is under threat because of a public-private policy initiated by Secretary of State Hillary Clinton. The real failure can be traced to a decision on her part to mandate non-profits and non-government organizations to promote private sector investment in the region since these ignore the dynamic nature of the numerous private sector companies in Tunisia, Algeria and Libya. The economic policies originating from Washington, DC. have inflicted enormous damage and put current investments by companies in the US, Europe and the gulf sovereign wealth funds in Abu Dhabi and Doha at risk.

Women are starting to play an increasingly influential role in the family businesses of the Gulf region that account for approximately 90 percent of commercial activity there. As women become more economically independent, the decision-making process has shifted to incorporate women's interests and motivations. However, it is essential that women are fully equipped with the right knowledge, tools and skills. Therefore, Gatehouse Bank has initiated a corporate social responsibility project to promote financial literacy among women in the GCC. The bank shares its skills and knowledge with women in Saudi Arabia, Kuwait and Qatar.

Four people were sentenced to death on charges of corruption and disrupting the country’s economic system by the Iran Judiciary. The four are Mahafarid Amir-Khosravi, Behdad Behzadi, his legal advisor, Iraj Shoja, his financial solicitor and Saeed Kiani Rezazadeh, head of the Ahvaz branch of Saderat Bank. Other defendants were handed down sentences including imprisonment and cash fines. The defendants stood trial for misappropriating a total of USD2.6 billion of funds by using forged documents to obtain credit from banks to purchase state-owned companies. However, almost none of the companies involved in this case were ordered closed by the court.

Several industry sectors, led by the banking and financial segment, are set to increase hiring due to large-scale projects announced recently in the country. Sectors that are expected to see strong hiring this year are banks, oil & gas, and petrochemicals as well as construction and real estate, according to leading recruitment advisors. The National Career Exhibition will showcase employment and training opportunities at more than 100 leading financial institutions in the country. It will be held from February 20 to 22, 2013 at Expo Centre Sharjah. The admission is restricted to UAE Nationals only.

In Sudan, the convening of the 5th Islamic Financial Industry Forum is going to take place during the period April 25-26 under the theme "Role of Islamic financial institutions in funding economic development projects.” Many international and Islamic financial institutions have been invited to attend the forum, including Islamic Development Bank, Saudi Development Fund, Abu Dubai Development Fund, Islamic Corporation for the Development of the Private Sector, Islamic Solidarity Fund for Development among others. Delegations representing the Oman Sultanate, Yemen, Egypt, Libya, Mauritania, Saudi Arabia and Bahrain are expected to take part in this annual event which is organised by the Khartoum-based Bayan Centre for Islamic Financial Engineering.

Al Rajhi Bank has launched a new online banking portal to provide its customers with online self-service tools. The new internet banking platform is built using Backbase's Bank 2.0 Portal technology and implemented by Al Rajhi's IT department in partnership with Thales. Backbase allows the banking client to be in control of their portal and makes it possible for Al Rajhi customers to customize their banking interface to their personal needs and preferences. For the e-business side, Backbase allows for cross- and up-sell capabilities along with the ability to target relevant content and functionality to the right customer segments and individual customers.

Saudi Arabia has appointed Mohammad al-Sheikh to head the Capital Market Authority, replacing Abdulrahman al-Tuwaijri, who had been at the helm of the agency since 2006. Mr Sheikh’s financial and legal background should help with his new role as the kingdom pushes forward with its plans to open up its nearly $400bn stock market to direct international buyers for the first time. This appointment is the latest in a series of reshuffles in the financial and political teams in Saudi Arabia, shifting towards private sector expertise.

Geopolitics have a growing weight on consumer banking in Dubai because it is the Middle East's banking centre and geographically close to major countries targeted by sanctions. In theory, as long as money does not have criminal links or belong to people or companies directly targeted by international sanctions, banks should be able to accept it. But in practice, the costs of checking that rules are obeyed have become so high that banks are turning down some deposits in advance. The costs of regulatory compliance could slow Dubai's banking growth. Especially Syrian, Iranian and U.S. citizens are being affected by this concern.

Path Solutions, provider of Islamic banking software, has announced the deployment and successful rollout of iMAL Islamic core banking system at all five Al Hilal Islamic Banking Services branches of Ahlibank. iMAL was implemented using Microsoft Windows OS and Sybase Software. According to Ahlibank CEO Abdul Aziz Al Balushi, iMAL will enable the delivery of Islamic banking products and services whilst ensuring full compliance with the Sharia guidelines and local regulations.

Leeds United owners GFH Capital are reportedly planning to sell the football club, just seven weeks after completing their takeover. Current owner of Hull FC rugby league club Adam Pearson is believed to be leading a bid by a consortium of Yorkshire businessmen. The deal is understood to be for 51 per cent with a full takeover later this year. A GFH Capital statement last night said that they had received several offers to invest in the club alongside them, but none had been accepted.

Saudi Arabia has led the way in developing pristine new cities devoted to specialized industries through a proposed public/private endeavor. Under development are four Economic Cities, Each of the them has a different private developer. The Saudi Arabian General Investment Authority (SAGIA) is consigned the role of attracting and processing foreign direct investment. The Economic Cities Authority is designed to regulate but not develop the new cities. The projects are intended to bring in modern technology, management skills, corporate governance and new industries so that the Kingdom is no longer dependent on oil and gas.

Alafco, a Kuwait-based Aircraft leasing group, may list some of its shares on an international exchange. The idea reportedly came from shareholders. However, the size of the stake that could be listed or on which exchange was not announced. Kuwait Finance House owns a 53.69 percent stake in Alafco, the rest belongs to State-run Kuwait Airways Corporation and private investors.