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Saudi's Ijmal LLC has hired Shariyah Review Bureau (SRB), to help achieve Sharia Compliance in all its business activities. In this role, SRB will lead and oversee the company's Sharia compliant operations with global standards. Ijmal was incorporated in 2014 by Al Deghaither Group, Al-Othaim Holding, ICD and Nizwa Bank. Ijmal partners with real estate developers through a hybrid structure that incentivizes developers to achieve better quality products. Ijmal started its operations targeting developments located in Riyadh, Jeddah, Dammam and Khobar. So far, Ijmal has partnered with one developer building 68 sea-front apartments in Kohbar Saudi Arabia.

Kuwait-based Wethaq Takaful Insurance Company intends to sell its stake in the Egyptian unit, Wethaq Takaful Egypt for KWD1.3 million (US$4.3 million). The board of the Kuwaiti insurer had given Wednesday the go-ahead to sell its stake in the Egyptian unit in favour of a buyer whose name was not mentioned in the company's statement to the Kuwaiti Stock Exchange. The Shareholders' structure in Wethaq Egypt includes: Wethaq Takaful Insurance Company of Kuwait (60%), Kuwait-based Adeem Investment and Wealth Management Company (39.9%), and Kuwaiti investor Najeeb Al-Humaidhi (0.1%).

The Egyptian Islamic Finance Association (EIFA) obtained the licence from Bahrain-based Accounting and Auditing Organization for Islamic Financial Institutions (AAOIFI), EIFA's Chairman Mohamed Al-Beltagy said. By this licence, the association is capable of conducting accreditation tests for bankers and auditors of Islamic banking on behalf of AAOIFI in Egypt, the chairman stated. A number of bankers have already applied to conduct the accreditation tests, he added. The Bahraini organization will provide the necessary training for the bankers and auditors before conducting the test. Passing the accreditation tests is considered as an international accreditation for those who work in the field of Islamic banking.

Khalid Alsweilem, a former senior official at Saudi Arabia's central bank says he believes the kingdom may soon change the way it manages its oil wealth as part of efforts to protect its financial reserves in an era of cheap crude. The Saudi Arabian Monetary Agency ( SAMA ) manages the vast bulk of petrodollars earned by the world's top oil exporting country; net foreign assets at the central bank totalled $664.5 billion in June. Alsweilem, who managed the assets as chief investment officer at SAMA , argues the arrangement is dangerous because the finance ministry can draw freely on the reserves when it wants to cover budget deficits caused by periods of low oil prices.

GFH Financial Group has announced its financial results for the first half of 2015 ended June 30, 2015. For the first six months of 2015, the Group reported a net profit of US$13.6 million compared with US$14.8 million during the prior year period. Net profit for the second quarter of 2015 was US$7.6 million versus US$12.4 million reported in the second quarter of 2014. Last year's results included a one-off income of US$33 million as a result of a recovery. Excluding this one-off gain, net profit for the first six months of 2015 increased to US$13.6 million compared to a loss of US$18.2 million for the prior year period.

Al Barak Bank Egypt's total cash and due from Central Bank of Egypt reached around EGP 3.656 billion (US$ 229.8 million) at the end of June 2015 versus EGP 1.850 billion at the end of December 2014. The financial lists showed that bank's investments in governmental notes recorded 5.319 billion Egyptian pounds at the end of June 2015 opposed to 3.604 billion Egyptian pounds at the end of 2014, making EGP 1.71 billion increase. According to the lists, Al Baraka Bank Egypt 's total volume of Murabaha, Mudaraba and Musharka for customers hit EGP8.534 billion at the end of June 2015 compared to EGP8.462 billion at the end of 2014.

The National Commercial Bank ( NCB ) has successfully settled an issuance of subordinated Additional Tier I capital Sukuk, in the amount of SAR 2 Billion, and compliant with Islamic Sharia principles through a private placement offer in Saudi Arabia. Sukuk issuances such as this are intended to strengthen the Bank's capital base in accordance with the Basel III framework and sustain its growth while maintaining healthy capital adequacy levels. Additionally, the Sukuk will continue to extend the maturity profile of NCB 's liabilities while continuing to diversify its sources of funding. NCB Capital Company acted as sole Lead Manager.

ICG-Events is organising its annual IREF Summit which is now in its 11th year. The event is scheduled to take place on the 1st-2nd of December 2015 in London. On the evening of the 1st of December, ICG will also be hosting the IREF Summit Awards of Excellence which will take place at the event's Gala Dinner. The IREF Summit prides itself on being industry led and industry focused and over the years has established itself as the foremost gathering based on its ability to bring together the leading industry experts and institutions to explore the key issues impacting the sector and its future development. For further information on the Summit please visit www.irefsummit.co.uk or contact info@icg-events.com

Barwa Bank's net profit for the half-year stood at QAR 412 million, while earnings per share rose to QAR 1.39in the first half of 2015, compared with QAR 1.38over the corresponding period in 2014. Underlined by growth across its financing assets and investment securities, the bank's total assets soared by 16% to QAR 41.3 billion for the first half of the year; financing assets alone registered an increase of 10% to exceed QAR 24.4 billion. Owing to Barwa Bank's focus on product and service development and integration across business segments, as well as to a heavy push on tech-driven innovation, customer deposits for the first half of 2015, increased by 4% to stand at QAR 23.2 billion.

The General Council for Islamic Banks and Financial Institutions (CIBAFI) and the World Bank are pleased to announce their joint international conference on "Corporate Governance for Islamic Financial Institutions: Lessons from Recent Global Developments", which is due to take place in Amman, Jordan on 15th and 16th September 2015. The one and half day conference aims to bring together various stakeholders from the private sector, multilateral development institutions, international and national regulatory bodies, policy-makers, and academia to discuss the issue of corporate governance in the Islamic financial services industry (IFSI).

Iran's foreign minister Mohammad Javad Zarif called on Sunday for a united front among Middle Eastern nations to fight militancy, in his first regional trip since Iran reached an agreement with world powers on the country's nuclear programme - an agreement that raised fears among its Gulf Arab neighbours. Most Gulf Arab states are worried that Iran's July 14 accord will hasten detente between Tehran and Washington, emboldening Tehran to increase backing for Middle Eastern allies at odds with Gulf Arab countries. Most Sunni Muslim-ruled Gulf Arab states have long accused Tehran of interference in Arab affairs, alleging financial or armed support for political movements.

The Islamic insurance industry has developed remarkably over the last four years. Indeed, the number of Islamic insurance companies grew by nearly 73% between 2008 and 2010 (i.e. from 113 to 195), with these being based in more than 30 countries. Given its depth, the European insurance industry is an established and fully-equipped vehicle for the introduction of Islamic insurance operations. Furthermore, the European market is familiar with the concept of mutuality and cooperative insurance, which has many similarities with Islamic insurance. The regulatory reforms across Europe have helped to accelerate the expansion of Islamic insurance products and services in this region.

GCC countries have experienced massive regulatory change with respect to the insurance sector over the past 12 months, a move that could result in shakeout in the sector, ratings agency Standard & Poor’s said. While the new set of regulations are expected to have a positive long-term impact on the sector — in terms of better capital management, liquidity, internal controls and corporate governance — regional insurance firms, particularly Islamic insurers are facing rising costs. Despite year-on-year premium growth of over 10 per cent in most GCC markets, the GCC insurance sector is overcrowded. Competition is particularly high in the takaful segment.

The Thomson Reuters Global Sukuk Index is at 118.15458 points, up from 117.85307 at the end of last month and 115.79726 at the end of last year. The Thomson Reuters Investment Grade Sukuk Index is at 116.75730 against 116.56666 at end-June and 113.69014 at end-2014. Sukuk in the pipeline include: Malaysia's West Coast Expressway Sdn Bhd plans a guaranteed 1 billion ringgit ($265 million) sukuk murabaha programme to fund a highway project. Bank Muscat has delayed plans to launch a 500 million rial ($1.3 billion) sukuk programme after the central bank rejected the proposal. urkiye Finans Katilim Bankasi has invited banks to pitch for a potential dollar-denominated sukuk to bolster its supplementary capital.

Eskan Bank has appointed Securities & Investment Company (SICO) as lead arranger for the first real estate investment trust (REIT) on the Bahrain Bourse. Eskan Bank 's REIT will consist of two income-generating and unleveraged properties currently owned by Bahrain Property Musharaka Trust (BPMT) which was formed in May 2011, in collaboration with reputable institutional investors and high net worth individuals. As arranger, SICO is responsible for managing the entire process. The Sharia-compliant REIT is expected to have a total value of BD20 million, with a tranche that will be offered to the public through the initial public offering (IPO) that is planned to take place later this year.

The Thomson Reuters Global Sukuk Index is at 118.07262 points, up from 117.85307 at the end of last month and 115.79726 at the end of last year. The Thomson Reuters Investment Grade Sukuk Index is at 116.83897 against 116.56666 at end-June and 113.69014 at end-2014. Some sukuk in the pipeline are: Shareholders of Oman's Renaissance Services approved in early July plans for the company to buy back mandatory convertible bonds and finance that by issuing up to $200 million of perpetual bonds, either conventional or sukuk. Saudi Arabia-based Arab Petroleum Investments Corp could issue its first sukuk later this year as part of its recently-established $3 billion sukuk programme. Malaysia's Sarawak Energy plans to issue 1 billion ringgit ($264 million) of sukuk.

Faisal Islamic Bank of Egypt (FAIT) has achieved profits volume of 387.1 million Egyptian pounds (US$49.4 million) within the first half of 2015 versus EGP 351.48 million in the same period of 2014 marking 10% increase. The bank's revenues has been increased to 2.15 billion Egyptian pounds in six months opposed to 1.81 billion within the first half of 2014 registering 19% increase. The volume of bank's total assets also has been boosted to EGP 53.2 billion at the end of June 2015 compared to EGP 49.05 billion at the end of 2014 with 8.5% increase. The business volume of Faisal Islamic Bank of Egypt has recorded EGP 53.2 billion. Moreover, the number of accounts managed by the bank has been increased from 1.083 million at the end of June 2014 to 1.086 million at the end of June 2015.

The General Council for Islamic Banks and Financial Institutions (CIBAFI), the global umbrella of Islamic financial institutions, and the World Bank have signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU). The MoU will help foster the development of Islamic finance globally and expand its use as an effective tool for financing development worldwide, including in non-Muslim countries. The MoU serves as the foundation for future cooperation in the areas of knowledge generation and dissemination; distilling and sharing lessons of experience; encouraging research and promoting awareness; and enhancing capacity in the Islamic financial services industry.

Bahrain-based Ibdar Bank has appointed Mr. Ahmed Al-Rayes as Chief Investment Officer (CIO) of the Bank. Effective 9 June 2015, Mr. Al-Rayes is responsible for leading the investment and wealth management teams and for establishing and implementing investment strategies to expand the Bank's investments horizon. This includes both broadening Ibdar's client base, strengthening existing relationships with key clients and partners and building relationships with international institutions globally. Mr. Al-Rayes holds a Bachelor of Science degree in Mechanical Engineering from the University of Bahrain and an MBA from the University of Strathclyde in Glasgow, Scotland. He has also completed a number of executive and Islamic training programmes in the region and internationally.

Exacerbated by the pursuit for higher profits, capital preservation and food security, the oil rich region has over the years witnessed increasing demand for agricultural investments. Saudi's Sidra Capital hit the news when they opened up the largest Islamic structured trade finance fund in the world. It specifically invests in agricultural commodities, energy and metals. SEDCO Capital also positioned agriculture in their portfolio by recently launching a Shariah compliant Agribusiness Fund for which they have already raised $35 million and are targeting to close at $150 million. They have also in the past invested in UK-based Insight investment's Global Farmland Fund and AGF Latin America Fund.