IslamicFinance.de

Oman’s Islamic financial institutions are showing robust growth with the value of gross assets touching OMR2.25 billion by the end of 2015, accounting for a 7.45 per cent market share of the total banking industry, said Hamoud Sangour Al Zadjali, executive president of the Central Bank of Oman (CBO). Islamic banks and window operations are expected to ramp up this market share to 10 per cent of the entire banking industry by 2018. The CBO chief said gross finance had also grown to touch OMR1.78 billion by 2015-end, indicating a market share of 8.86 per cent. All these achievements were reported within a short span of about three years, despite teething problems faced by these institutions.

Jaiz Bank Plc has concluded plans to go national, its management has said. Speaking in Kaduna at the just concluded International Trade Fair organised by the Kaduna Chamber of Commerce, Industries, Mines and Agriculture (KADCCIMA), the Bank’s Manager in Kaduna Halilu Murtala said additional branches would soon open in Lagos, Ibadan, Ilorin and Port Harcourt. He said that this was in line with the Approval-in-Principle issued to the bank by the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) to go national. The bank's plan is to add at least ten more branches to the existing network of 19 branches spread across the country before the end of this year. Arrangements in fulfilment of CBN’s requirements have already been finalised, he said.

Barwa Bank has appointed Nasser Rashid Al Humaidi as group chief operating officer. Reporting to the acting GCEO of Barwa Bank Group, Khalid Yousef Al-Subeai, Al-Humaidi will be tasked with developing a unified structure to improve operational efficiency, increase proficiency and modernise processes and procedures, by using the latest financial sector tools. With more than 19 years’ experience in the operations management and information technology sectors, Al-Humaidi has a track record in a number of institutions from different sectors, including telecom, real estate development, oil and gas as well as national steering committees. He worked as the executive director for Operations & Support at Qatar Development Bank for the past three years.

Falcon Private Bank Ltd. on Wednesday sought to distance itself from a controversy involving a Malaysian state fund caught up in allegations of political corruption, saying the transactions it carried out were based on purely commercial terms. Several Swiss banks, including Falcon, have come under scrutiny for transactions involving 1Malaysia Development Bhd. fund, or 1MDB. Among the transactions that are being investigated by authorities in Switzerland and Malaysia is the transfer of $681 million to the private account of Najib Razak, Malaysian Prime Minister.

Maybank Islamic Bhd is focused on ensuring a healthy capital and liquidity buffer in the face of the current economic challenges. Chief executive officer Datuk Muzaffar Hisham said Islamic banking and financial institutions as such, need strong, effective and sustainable risk management strategies. He also said the risk management helps to evaluate risks and formulate mitigating action. In terms of assets and financing outlook, Muzaffar said Maybank Islamic expects to see between nine and 10 per cent growth this year as compared with about 18-19 per cent year-on-year in 2015. For the financial year ended Dec 31, 2015, Maybank Islamic’s total assets exceeded US$36 billion, while gross financing reached RM131.1 billion, with deposits at RM123.4 billion.

Madinah Gov. Prince Faisal bin Salman launched on Monday a 14-story complex costing SR52 million that would house all the region's charities. Speaking at the opening, Prince Faisal, who is also chairman of the Charitable Society for Social Services, said the complex would have state-of-the art facilities that would streamline services to the needy. Abdul Barie bin Awadh Al-Thibaiti, secretary general of the society, said the new building would generate much-needed funds for charitable activities. He said the 30-year-old organization helps more than 6,000 students a year on a five-year budget of SR33 million.

Moody's Investors Service has placed on review for downgrade the ratings of eight government-related issuers (GRIs) based in GCC countries. These issuers are: Emirates Telecommunications Grp Co PJSC, Industries Qatar Q.S.C., International Petroleum Investment Company, Mubadala Development Company, Qatar Petroleum, Saudi Basic Industries Corporation, Saudi Electricity Company, Saudi Telecom Company. Moody's also placed on review for downgrade the ratings of Qatari Diar Finance Q.S.C. (QDF) and the ratings on the notes issued by 1MDB Energy Limited (1MDBEL). Today's actions follow the placement on review for downgrade of the sovereign ratings of Saudi Arabia, Qatar, the United Arab Emirates and the emirate of Abu Dhabi on 4 March 2016.

While some form of sustainable, responsible and impact (SRI) investment appeals to many people—of roughly 1,000 high-net-worth investors polled last year by Morgan Stanley Wealth Management, 71 percent expressed interest in SRI—taking action can be challenging due to the plethora of options available, many of which have broad objectives. It’s an issue that has not escaped notice within the asset management industry, where a trend of theme-based customization is developing. Morgan Stanley Wealth Management and J.P. Morgan have launched platforms aimed at making the impact investment process simpler and more efficient for investors.

Several companies in Oman, including a real estate developer, are planning to issue sukuk or Islamic debt instrument. A real estate company has already approached the market regulator Capital Market Authority for floating a sukuk issue for its second phase development, said Abdullah Salim Al Salmi, executive president of the Capital Market Authority (CMA). However, he declined to name the real estate company that is trying to raise funds by way of a sukuk issue. Al Salmi said that the banks may face liquidity problem and the financial institutions have to issue either sukuk or bond for raising funds to avoid an asset-liability mismatch.

Fitch Ratings has assigned Indonesia's proposed US dollar-denominated sovereign global certificates (sukuk) issued through Perusahaan Penerbit SBSN Indonesia III (PPSI-III) an expected 'BBB-(EXP)' rating. The expected rating is in line with Indonesia's Long-Term Foreign Currency Issuer Default Rating (IDR) of 'BBB-', which has a Stable Outlook. The rating reflects Fitch's view that cash flows supporting payment on the sukuk will constitute direct, unconditional, unsecured and general obligations of Indonesia, ranking equally with Indonesia's unsecured and unsubordinated marketable external debt. Fitch has given no consideration to the sukuk's underlying assets.

Petroliam Nasional Bhd (Petronas) is enjoying a twin boost as commodity prices rally and Islamic bond costs fall just as it considers borrowing. The difference in yield between 10-year government sukuk and two-year securities shrank to a five-month low of 91 basis points last week from as high as 128 in early January, making longer-term financing attractive for issuers such as Petronas. That’s been helped by record foreign purchases of ringgit government bonds last month, a rally in the currency and a recovery in Brent crude. Petronas last month posted its third loss in five quarters, announced plans to cut 1,000 jobs and said it might need to raise funds and tap cash reserves to cover capital expenditure and dividends.

Thousands of Pakistani households are turning to microfinance institutions which provide loans based on Islamic law, or Sharia. The available video looks at micro financing solutions in Pakistan provided by Achuwat which provides interest free loans. Religious lending is expected to grow in the coming years, and this video looks at case studies of a school teacher and tailor. The majority of clients of micro financing solutions are women.

Global sukuk market is expected to remain fairly resilient at around US$55bil to US$65bil (RM231bil to RM273bil) this year compared with US$66.4bil last year, despite ebbing global market sentiment, particularly in Malaysia amid the weaker ringgit, according to RAM Ratings. Given the steep fall in crude oil prices that have adversely affected the core sukuk markets of Malaysia and the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC), the rating agency’s projection takes into account these countries’ government expenditure cuts and potential delays in infrastructure spending. Malaysia’s global leadership last year was underscored by US$23bil of sukuk issuance from corporate and quasi-government sectors.

Qatar’s Barwa Ban has announced the appointment of Mr. Nasser Rashid Al-Humaidi as the Group’s Chief Operating Officer (GCOO). Mr. Al-Humaidi, who will be directly reporting to the Acting GCEO of Barwa Bank Group Mr. Khalid Yousef Al-Subeai, will be developing an integrated structural framework to enhance operational efficiency, boost productivity and streamline processes and procedures by employing the latest financial sector technologies. He is backed up by more than 19 years of experience in the ??operations management and information technology sectors. He worked as the Executive Director for Operations & Support at Qatar Development Bank over the past three years.

As part of the training programs provided internally by Capital Market Authority (CMA), Accounting and Auditing Organization for Islamic Financial Institutions (AAOIFI) has held the 2nd batch of the training course “Essentials of Islamic Economics and Finance” to CMA’s management team members and employees, on March 21-22, 2016, in Riyadh. The course was delivered by Sheikh Dr. Yousef Al-Shubaili and Dr. Sami al Suwailem. AAOIFI’s active institutional membership includes more than 13 regulatory and supervisory authorities (for capital markets, insurance and finance) and central banks. AAOIFI provides its technical and professional services to a number of supervisory and regulatory bodies across the globe.

The international rating agency Fitch ranked the Saudi banking system fourth-best and the strongest banking system in the world, after Australia, Canada and Singapore, said Governor of the Saudi Arabian Monetary Agency Dr. Fahd Al-Mubarak. In a speech during the Islamic Banking and Finance Conference organized by Makkah-based Umm Al Qura University, he said that financial activity compatible with the provisions of Islamic law is witnessing a remarkable growth at the international level, with an average ratio estimated at 17% per annum.

The Islamic Development Bank (IsDB) has issued a $1.5 billion five-year Sukuk as part of its $25 billion Sukuk programme. The issuance was arranged by Emirates NBD Capital, Boubyan Bank, Gulf International Bank CIMB, JP Morgan, Natixis and Standard Chartered. It will be listed in the London, Malaysia and Nasdaq Dubai stock exchanges.

Representatives from across the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) gathered in Khartoum for the Financial Inclusion Forum: the Strategic Approach Towards Financial and Social Stability, held from 23 to 24 February. More than 350 people from 11 Arab countries participated in the forum’s events, namely Sudan, Egypt, Lebanon, Yemen, Jordan, Iraq, Tunisia, Emirates, Saudi Arabia, Qatar, and Oman. Financial inclusion was framed as a measure to support financial and social stability in the Arab region. The participants issued a series of recommendations that would better enable the banking sectors in each respective country to ensure economic financial inclusion.

The future of Islamic bonds in the Middle East and North Africa (Mena) seems "excellent" in the medium-to-long term, but lack of supply and right price is "stifling" demand and liquidity in the market, according to NBAD. Finding that oil prices will be a key determinant of sukuk returns in 2016, NBAD said the uncertainty over the likely trajectory in the US interest rates, the bear market in oil, and increasing fiscal concerns across the region all contributed to a bearish tone in the market, causing many issuers to remain on the sidelines. Although GCC sukuk investors remain natural buyers, they have tightened their credit quality criteria, and become much more price sensitive.

With a more inclusive foreign policy, including a renewed stance on the Middle East and Africa, Chinese president Xi Jinping has set in motion greater China-OIC relations, with the ‘One Belt, One Road’ initiative a central pillar to China’s grand strategy. In light of this development, the Islamic Corporation for the Development of the Private Sector (ICD) is hosting an event to connect investors and regulators from Asia, Africa and the Gulf with senior decision-makers of the world’s second-largest economy. To be held in Beijing on the 22nd March, 2016, the pioneering China OIC Forum aims to enhance partnerships between key industry players and multilateral bodies as well as identify joint investment opportunities.