IslamicFinance.de

The Minister of Finance in the Government of Kurdistan province, Baez Talabani has opened Ceyhan Bank for Islamic Investment and Development. The chairman of Ceyhan sets as goal of opening this bank to provide qualified and new services, on the basis of Islamic shareholders for people, companies and government institutions.

Armen Papazian said he was named to the post head of Islamic finance by UBS Investment Bank 2-1/2 weeks ago with a global mandate to hire staff and design innovative products and as sign of commitment, that UBS believes in the growth sector.

Faisal Private Bank's Chief Executive, Marco Rochat, said the absence of a global set of harmonised rules on sharia compliance created an unlevel playing field, reported Martin de Sa'Pinto on Reuters. Faisal Private Bank adivses on nearly USD 500 mn.

Gulf Finance House plans to launch a GBP 50 mn UK commercial property fund and a USD 50 mn Sukuk fund in the GCC. The USD 50 mn sukuk fund, to launch in the next two weeks pending regulatory approval, would focus on government, quasi-government, or very stable GCC issues, reported Ulf Laessing and Raissa Kasolowsky on Reuters.

Unicorn Investment Bank consider mergers in the Gulf, and acquisitions of about USD 2 bn in the Gulf, Europa and Asia. It plans a Sukuk Al Ijara about USD 425 mn in Q3 to fund its expansion reported Ulf Laessing and Raissa Kasolowsky on Reuters. Current targets are two Gulf firms, retail banks in Pakistan, India and Malaysia and one in Britain or continental Europe. Unicorn received also a license in Malaysia for a new set up.

Plans announced last September to issue USD 1.5 bn Sukuk by the end of 2008 had been postponed due to market conditions.

Algebra Capital sees the Mideast asset management sector to grow by 15 % from USD 80-100 bn to USD 300 bn by 2014. Fixed-income, which contributes less than 2-3 % of regional assets compared with a majority in equity investments, could provide a "tremendous growth" opportunity if regulators and governments focus on creating the domestic demand for new issues, Managing Director Mohieddine Kronfol said.

Franklin Rersouces Inc. holds a 40 % stake in Algebra Capital and have jointly launched 5 products on the equity side and now looking at fixed-income products and Islamic.

Royal Bank of Scotland sees big growth opportunities in Islamic investment banking, expecting asset growth rates to remain 15-20 percent annually and profitability levels to increase, Navid Goraya, RBS' global head of Islamic banking said.

Kuwait Finance House – Bahrain (KFH-Bahrain), has unveiled its new brand identity for ' Baytik Ijara Card', the first Islamic financing card that allows cardholders to acquire durable goods on a lease-to-own basis.

KFH-Bahrain's first Ijara card was initially launched in 2004. It gave customers the convenience to make purchases at hundreds of outlets in the Kingdom with the flexibility to pay back depending on period of their choice, which can range from 1 to 24 months.

Assets of the global Islamic finance industry are estimated to grow to around USD 1.6 trillion by 2012, a report by consultancy Oliver Wyman said. Growth opportunities lie in underpenetrated markets with large Muslim populations in the Middle East, Pakistan and South East Asia. Islamic wholesale banking needs to diversify from real estate finance to include advanced treasury services, innovative asset management, balance sheet management and securitisation management.

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The Kuwait Finance House (KFH) is set to open an investment bank in Saudi Arabia with a capital of SAR 500 mn (USD 133.3 mn). KFH is further looking into investment opportunities in the UAE, Oman and Qatar.

Fitch Ratings affirmed Kuwait Finance House's (KFH) Long-term Issuer Default Rating (IDR) at 'A+' and Short-term IDR at 'F1'. KFH’s Individual Rating was downgraded to 'C/D' from 'C' and placed on Rating Watch Negative (RWN). KFH's Support '1' and Support Rating Floor 'A+' were affirmed. The Outlook for the Long-term IDR is Stable.

Stanley Carvalho reported on 31 March on Reuters that Abu Dhabi's government-owned Al Hilal Bank will set up an Islamic bank in Kazakhstan. Al Hilal will headquarter the new bank in the central Asian state's capital Almaty, opening in the second half of 2009 with an initial capital of AED 100 mn(USD 27 mn).

Chairman of Hilal Bank is Ahmed Ateeq al-Mazrouei.

Grande Ecole Sup de Co Reims (Groupe Reims Management School) suggests a new course specialising on Islamic finance, which is coordinated by Ghassen Bouslama and offered in English.

Shariah scholar Abdulazeem Abozaid is cited in the Qatari newspaper The Peninsula to say that promises are binding in Islamic finance structuring to the degree of compensation for loss but not for entering into the contract.

Jane Bradley reported in the Scotsman on 3 April that Islamic Bank of Britain is introducting its mortgage product to Scotland. It is understood the launch is just the beginning of a wider push into Scotland – which is likely to include the opening of a physical branch and back office operations as well as the introduction of online retail banking for Scottish customers.

I just published an article with the Dow Jones Islamic Market Indexes Newsletter, giving an overview about the lines of arguments regarding performance and ethical screens, be it Islamic or Sustainability and what empiricial findings have been published.

It is claimed by critics that the reduction of the universe through ethical screens shall reduce the performance, likewise corporate social responsiblity comes against a cost. Similar counterarguments have been raised regarding Islamic screening criteria.

Bank Sarasin published a study doing own research with partners and reviewing published empirical analyses in the literature. It shows that there is no negative impact on performance. My review of empirical analyses in regard to Islamic finance concluded the same and all publications let conclude that ethical screens add value by way of risk management. An example is the debt limitation of the Sharia tolerance criteria.

Ethical screens may therefore improve the investment decision process and more research shall determine, which factors add value to the portfolio and therefore form part of a professional process.

James Makau reported in Business Daily on 31 March that the Gulf African Bank and First Community Bank became the first fully fledged Islamic banks in Kenya but both had to record losses in their first year of operations as operating expenses and heavy set-up costs took a heavy toll on earnings.

Gulf African Bank recorded a loss of Sh281 million last year while First Community Bank (FCB) posted a loss of Sh307 million within the same period despite both players recording increases in net income during the year.

The Amana Group was recently given a Letter of Provisional Approval by the Central Bank (CB) to establish a licensed commercial bank named Amana Bank Ltd., among the conditions is to raise a minimum capital requirement of Rs 2.5 bn.

Dubai Islamic Bank is set to implement this year its joint-venture with Jordan Dubai Capital and Dubai International Capital to invest in Industrial Development Bank and convert it to the Jordan Dubai Islamic Bank.

"The opportunities offered by Islamic finance in promoting global financial stability and financial inclusion are worth assessment by the leadership of the G-20 countries," said Jeddah-based Islamic Development Bank President Ahmed Mohamed Ali, reported Mushtak Parker in the Arab News.

The President told an Islamic Financial Architecture Colloquium hosted yesterday by Lord Mayor of the City of London Ian Luder at his official headquarters that it is time that the wider world should consider mainstreaming Islamic financial services. And the best way to do this is to accord the relevant Islamic finance stakeholders "observer status" within the framework of the G-20 and the expanded Financial Stability Forum of the International Monetary Fund (IMF).