IslamicFinance.de

The Arab Forum for Environment and Development (AFED) announced that its upcoming seventh annual conference will be held on 26-27 November 2014 at the Royal Convention Centre at Le Merdien in Amman. The theme will be food security options in Arab countries, based on a comprehensive report on the subject which AFED is preparing in cooperation with a group of experts at research and policy centers. The AFED Food Security report aims to provide an overview of the state of agricultural resources in Arab countries, and discuss the role of science and technology in enhancing water and food security. Experts are preparing case studies on vital issues such as virtual water trade in the GCC countries, marginal land productivity in the Badia of Jordan, and Morocco green plan, among many others.

The Islamic Development Bank Group is holding its Annual Meeting in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, from 22-26 June 2014 and celebrating the IDB’s 40th Year Anniversary. The meetings will be attended by finance and economy ministers of the (56) member countries and more than 1,000 delegates. The Annual Meeting of the IDB Group will take place over a five-day period in conjunction with sub-meetings. Meanwhile, on the occasion of the 40th Anniversary of the IDB Group, a number of events will be held including a forum titled “Fostering Dynamic Ecosystems in Developing Economies”, which will be held on June 23, 2014. In addition, an exhibition on innovation will be held alongside the Annual Meeting, with more than 40 innovative projects and solutions from 19 member countries.

The Gulf Bond and Sukuk Association (GBSA) held a seminar on Islamic finance in Dakar, Senegal last week at the Making Finance Work for Africa (MFW4A) Partnership Forum. The seminar covered key concepts in Islamic finance as well as current trends in the Sukuk market and the use of Shari’ah-compliant financing as a development tool. GBSA President Michael Grifferty said it has to be ensured that African companies and sovereigns are aware of all financing options available along with the respective risks and rewards.

The Islamic Financial Services Board (IFSB) is organising a Seminar on Islamic Finance in Kazakhstan with the theme, "Prospects and Challenges in the Development of Islamic Finance for Kazakhstan" on 16 June 2014 in Almaty, Kazakhstan. The National Bank of Kazakhstan will host the Seminar on Islamic finance as well as the IFSB Facilitating the Implementation of Standards (FIS) Workshop Series for Banking and Takaful on 17 - 19 June 2014. The one-day Seminar will cover the following topics: Islamic Finance for Central Asia: Growth with Stability - Regulatory Issues and Key Preconditions; The Role of Sukuk: Infrastructure Financing, Capital Market Instruments and High Quality Liquid Assets (HQLA); Panel Discussion on the Way forward for the Development of Islamic Finance for Kazakhstan.

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QInvest sees Turkey as being a key driver is Islamic finance growth worldwide and will be exploring the opportunity at the 9th Turkish-Arab Economic Forum, takingplace in Istanbul on 28th and 29th May 2014. QInvest has an office in Istanbul and offers cross-border services to clients from its presence in Qatar, Turkey and Saudi Arabia.The bank has been involved in a number of high profile sukuk issuances in Turkey. Besides, QInvesthas also been active in other areas of Islamic finance in the country, including Murabaha, and mezzanine and equity finance. The Bank is active in the Turkish asset management industry and is in talks with a leading portfolio management company to advise on sharia'a-compliant asset management.

The participants and honor guests of KazanSummit will be able to visit one of the most important national festivals of the people of the Volga river basin - the Sabantuy. The KazanSummit Organizing Committee allows the guests of Russia and Tatarstan to get to know the cultural and spiritual component of the life in the Republic. On June 7, there will be the excursion on the national festival Sabantuy for the participants and official delegates of KazanSummit. The Sabantuy is the largest national, multiethnic festival of the people of the Volga river basin and Russia, which is on the list of the masterpieces of the cultural heritage of the UNESCO.

Course overview:

- Enable participants to apply the principles of Islamic finance
- ExamiEnable participants to apply the principles of Islamic finance
- Examine in detail the different Islamic retail banking products offered by Islamic banks in
various jurisdictions including depository and wealth management solutions.
- Analyze different product structures, and other business related issues - regulatory, legal,
marketing and implementation challenges in the US market.
- Compare and contrast the various Islamic products with their conventional financial
equivalents
- At the end of the course, delegates will have a comprehensive understanding of the different
tools applied by Islamic banks to finance retail consumer needs, and will be able to structure
different solutions that are suitable for the US market.
- The course will use discussions, team exercises, and case studies to ensure delegates learn by
doing.ne in detail the different Islamic retail banking products offered by Islamic banks in
various jurisdictions including depository and wealth management solutions.
- Analyze different product structures, and other business related issues - regulatory, legal,

As the World Economic Forum on Africa (WEFA) ended on Friday, Mrs. Elzie Kanza, the Director and Head of Africa WEF, said about 50,000 social media items mentioned the Forum. The coverage had a total reach of over 2.1 billion - about 30 per cent of the world's population. Kanza said that the Chinese government had planned to invest US$42 billion in Africa, US$10 billion in investment financing, US$30 billion in extending credit lines and US$2 billion into a China-Africa investment fund. In the business sector, she said that the Dangote group is investing US$16 billion in Nigeria over the next four years and it is expected to create 180,000 jobs. Kanza added that another company will be investing US$1 billion across Africa in the next 10 years while 20,00 jobs will be created through the Digital Africa initiative.

The International Islamic Financial Market ( IIFM ) held its 30th Board of Directors meeting at Bank Indonesia's headquarters in Jakarta. The Board commended IIFM efforts in holding two successful industry consultative meetings on Sukuk standardization requirements from documentation, structures and guidelines point of view which were very well attended by industry stakeholders. Moreover, IIFM aims is to come up with more standards as per its well established comprehensive development process, some of which will be issued during 2014 and in the next year. On the sidelines of the Board meeting, a specialized industry seminar on "Islamic Capital & Money Market" was also organized, discussing the technical aspects of Sukuk, Islamic hedging and liquidity management tools.

The Deloitte Islamic Finance Knowledge Center (IFKC) in the Middle East and the Islamic Research & Training Institute (IRTI) held on March 27, 2014 the "Restructuring Sukuk- the Islamic Way" workshop in Dubai, the first of a series of executive workshops targeting industry practitioners, investors and issuers. The event tackled the Sukuk market trends and the key Sharia' and regulatory considerations for restructuring activities. The participants discussed actual restructuring case studies with analysis of risks associated with transactions and lessons learned. The event also provided practitioners the opportunity to hear different perspectives in discussions facilitated by leaders from Deloitte, DFSA , IDB Group , Islamic International Rating Agency, FWU Global Takaful, and Clifford Chance .

The 11th IFSB Annual Global Summit, themed "New Markets and Frontiers for Islamic Finance: Innovation and the Regulatory Perimeter", will be held in Mauritius. The session topics which reflect the importance of the Summit theme include: Global Overview of the Islamic Financial Services Industry (IFSI): Outlook and Policy Developments; Legal and Regulatory Environment of Islamic Finance; Sukuk, Market Development and Regulation, The Role of Islamic Finance in Economic Development: Promoting Financial Inclusion, Sustaining Innovation, Expanding the Regulatory Perimeter - Striking a Balance; Panel Discussion on "New and Emerging Islamic Finance Jurisdictions: Opportunities and Challenges Ahead. Global players and thought leaders from among the regulators and market players of the Islamic financial services industry have confirmed their participation.

The Brookings-Zaostreno “World Forum on Governance” was held in Prague on April 9 – 11, 2014. There were sessions on prosecutorial initiatives and the role of judges, police and prosecutors in countering corruption and a consideration of transnational instruments such as treaties, courts and international organizations. But there were also sessions on fighting corruption with social media and the relationship between government reform efforts and corruption control. In addition there was an emphasis on the corporate side and on how to include the private sector in the fight against corruption. This year’s Forum had a broad perspective to include government reform as a means of getting at the underlying incentive structures in public sector corruption.

The Islamic Financial Services Board (IFSB) successfully organised the 6th IFSB Seminar on Legal Issues in the Islamic Financial Services Industry (IFSI), themed "Innovation in Sukuk Securitisation and Islamic Hedging Instruments: Developments and Challenges" on 25 March 2014 in Brunei Darussalam. This Seminar is a part of the IFSB seminar series on legal issues in the Islamic financial services industry. Speakers shared their insights on the legal challenges faced by asset securitisation and Sukuk structuring. Moreover, discussions focused on the need for establishing international standards governing transactions of Islamic hedging instruments in order to reduce the legal uncertainty. In the last session, speakers discussed the Shari`ah governance structure and the role of Shari`ah supervisory boards in assisting the innovation and development of these evolving markets.

The Securities Commission Malaysia (SC) and the Oxford Centre for Islamic Studies (OCIS) co-hosted the 5th annual Roundtable on Islamic Finance in Kuala Lumpur on March 22 and 23. The roundtable, themed ’Harnessing Waqf Into a Bankable Social Financing and Investment Asset Class’ discussed the development of waqf and how it can contribute towards broadening the Islamic finance industry globally. Industry practitioners and scholars from around the world gathered to discuss challenges and potential of waqf in the philanthropic spheres, including issues of legislation, governance and professionalism, and capital. The global effort to harness Waqf into a bankable social financing and investment asset class is also in line with the SC’s strategy to identify new growth segments to further internationalise Malaysia.

Premier of Bermuda, Craig Cannonier, and Finance Minister Bob Richards are in London this week to lead efforts to bring Islamic finance business to the Island. The pair will attend the Global Islamic Finance and Investment Group (IFIG) Conference and speak to a number of industry stakeholders. The objective of the IFIG Conference is to highlight the necessary regulatory frameworks for Islamic finance and to outline strategies for successful international collaboration. In addition, the Premier is due to meet with UK Government Minister Mark Simmons of the Foreign and Commonwealth Office and representatives of the UK Treasury. Bermuda has already established partnerships with the main financial centres in a range of Muslim countries and has signed double taxation agreements with Qatar and Bahrain.

A two-day forum with the participation of over 470 businessmen, foreign investors, managers of international companies, federal and regional agencies representatives was held at the Kazan Ski Resort in the Republic of Tatarstan. «Invest in Tatarstan» was organized by Tatarstan Investment Development Agency with the participation of Tatarstan Development Corporation and Tatarstan Export Corporation. Discussions of region’s attractiveness for the foreign companies and business development in the first half of the day continued with several round tables, likec health care, real estate market, and halal industry. The forum not only demonstrates investment opportunities of the region, but also gives an opportunity to discuss specific issues directly with the leadership of the republic.

Saudi investment and asset management firm Alkhabeer Capital has hosted a roundtable on ‘Family Businesses and Private Equity’ in Jeddah. The event was attended by clients, partners and a select group of prominent industry leaders and was chaired by keynote speaker, Dr. Benoit Leleux, a professor of Entrepreneurship and Finance at IMD Business School in Switzerland. Dr. Leleux presented two key sessions which addressed the relationship between private equity and family businesses, the first titled “Family Business and Private Equity – Valuable Partnership or Conflicts of Interest” and the second addressed “The Impact of Governance and Presence of Non-Family Executives on Family Businesses’ Entrepreneurial Wealth Creation”.

The Islamic Financial Services Board (IFSB) successfully organised four events in Khartoum, Sudan on 18 - 20 February 2014. The Insurance Supervisory Authority of Sudan hosted the 6th Seminar on the Regulation of Takaful and the Facilitating the Implementation of the IFSB Standards (FIS) on Takaful while the Central Bank of Sudan (CBoS) was the host for the IFSB Meet the Members Session and the FIS Workshops on Banking. In addition, two workshops were held in Khartoum: the Facilitating the Implementation of the IFSB Standards (FIS) Workshops on Banking and the FIS Workshop on Takaful.

The International Finance Corporation (IFC) and the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) have announced plans to host the second International Sustainable Banking Forum in Lagos from March 3 to March 4. The forum will serve as a platform to share experience and build partnerships for sustainable banking in emerging markets. It is to attract policy makers from governments, multilateral development banks, financial institutions, civil society organisations and technical institutions. The IFC said that sustainable banking helped banks and financial institutions to understand better the benefits and risks of environmental and social impacts of their investments and loans.