IslamicFinance.de

The Islamic Development Bank Group (IDB) announced its intention to invest into four new EXPO-2017-oriented projects in Kazakhstan in 2014 through the Islamic Corporation for the Development of the Private Sector (ICD). ICD, Baiterek Holding and LGK Holdings signed a memorandum to create the Central Asian Fund of Renewable Energy with the initial capital of $50 million. Moreover, ICD is going to cooperate with the Investment Fund of Kazakhstan in the development of float-glass production in southern Kazakhstan, a project worth$200 million. Besides, ICD will provide $10 million for procurement of manufacturing lines and raw materials during the first year of a new Aluminum Extrusion Plant's operations. ICD has also achieved an agreement with OLZHA Holding to cooperate in the construction of a grain terminal and elevator western Kazakhstan. The construction is expected to begin this summer.

According to Mr. Darkhan Nurpeissov, Vice Chairman of the Agency regulating the Regional Financial Center of Almaty (RFCA), Almaty is to be transformed into a global center of Islamic finance by 2015-2020. By 2012-2015 it is planned to put in place infrastructure for the Islamic financial industry to turn Almaty into a full-fledged center of Islamic finance. Legal foundation has already been laid. Almaty is home to the first Islamic bank in Kazakhstan. A second Islamic bank is to enter the market shortly. Besides, an Islamic insurance company and a brokerage, a handful of consultancies and funds have been launched. However, according to Mr. Nurpeissov, the population is not fully aware of Islamic finance. Kazakhstan is going to take over the chairmanship of the Organization of the Islamic Conference (OIC) in June.

The Islamic Corporation for the Development of the Private Sector (ICD) moves in the Islamic banking sector of Kazakhstan with a mandate of converting a regional Bank into an Islamic bank with expected investment of up to 35 percent of the subscribed and paid up capital of the bank. Accordingly, it will become second Islamic bank in the country. Earlier, ICD , together with a diverse group of International and local investors including owners of Zaman Group established the first Islamic Leasing (Ijara) Company in Kazakhstan with authorized capital of $ 36 million. In addition, ICD extended $ 20 million for the real estate development project and committed $ 40 million lines of financing facility for the SME sector in the country.

The Islamic Corporation for the Development of the Private Sector gave start to a fund aiming to finance renewable- energy projects in Central Asia and plans another in Africa. The fund is worth $35 million and is situated in Kazakhstan. In the very near future the North Africa fund containing $35 million to $50 million is to be opened. Financing for renewables ventures is targeting emerging markets due to the governments' striving to curb reliance on fuel imports and cash-strapped nations in Europe cut subsidies for clean power.

According to Neil Miller - Global Head of Islamic Finance at KPMG - despite the global financial crisis, Islamic banking has demonstrated rapid development and lossless operation reaching an average growth rate of 10%. He further adds that the most significant development is observed in Malaysia. Azerbaijan should learn from Malaysia as well as from Kazakhstan. Azerbaijan should first take care of the lack of legislation in the area of Islamic finance in order to work on development in the spheres of Islamic banking and Islamic insurance.

According to the Development Commission of Almaty Regional Financial Center of Kazakhstan's National Bank, the Islamic Development Bank (IDB) has allocated $25 million for Kazakhstan farmers. In 11 regions of the country, a series of training seminars aiming to teach Islamic financing methods for personnel of branches and representative offices have started. Professor Adalet Dzhabiyev, Director of Badr Finance & Investment, conducts the training.

A new $50 million fund - the Central Asia Renewable Energy Fund - was launched by the Islamic Corporation for Development of Private Sector (ICD). According to the CEO of the corporation, Mr. Khaled Al-Aboodi, the money will be used to benefit countries of the Caucasus and Central Asia Regions, most important of which will be Kazakhstan, Azerbaijan and Turkey. Further target countries of the fund include Kyrgyzstan, Turkmenistan, Tajikistan, Uzbekistan, Bosnia, Albania and Kosovo. Factors like growing environmental awareness, evidence of climate change, scarcity of fossil fuels, and an increasing commitment by governments to support new sources of energy lead to growing interest in renewable energy in these countries.

Read more on: http://www.abc.az/eng/news_12_10_2012_68763.html

The Islamic Development Bank (IDB) is looking for new investments for farming projects in Kazakhstan through its $600 million agribusiness fund. Gulf countries offer capital but they do not have agricultural resources, while there are countries like Kazakhstan, which - on the contrary - have the resources but not the capital, said the chief executive of IDB. There are also opportunities in the sector of renewable energy, which is why IDB considers new investments into solar and wind projects that is not paid enough attention to.

See more under: http://www.cpifinancial.net/news/post/15954/idb-launches-renewable-energ...

Islamic Development Bank intends to finance projects worth 1 billion USD in Kasakhstan, thus implementing the country strategy. At the beginning of October a new country strategy of the bank in Kazakhstan will be signed. According to plan, in the following 2 years IDB will provide financial means for a number of projects.

More on: http://caspionet.kz/eng/business/In_20122014_IDB_will_finance_Kazakhstan...

Development Bank of Kazakhstan has lately decided to swap their 240 million-ringgit sukuk (five-year murabaha Islamic note) to U.S. dollars. The Astana-based bank already sold debt denominated in the Malaysian currency in July of this year, in order to prepare the dollar swap that comes due in August 2017.

The Development Bank of Kazakhstan issued the first sukuk in the former Soviet Union worth $75 million. It is expexted that this sukuk will soon be followed by a number of new issues in the country. The issued bond will generates an annual payment of 5.5 per cent and is a part of the bank's Islamic note programme worth 1.5 billion ringgit. THe programme is subjected to the sharia principle of murabaha.

S&P Indices made an anouncement that a new Index will be launched due to increase in the demand for a shariah-compliant benchmark in Islamic countries. The new S&P/OIC COMCEC 50 Shariah Index will measure the performance of 50 leading Shariah-compliant companies from members of the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation (OIC). Eligible countries and territories for the Index are: Bahrain, Bangladesh, Côte d'Ivoire, Egypt, Indonesia, Jordan, Kazakhstan, Kuwait, Lebanon, Malaysia, Morocco, Nigeria, Oman, Pakistan, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Tunisia, Turkey and the United Arab Emirates.

For the first time, the Development Bank of Kazakhstan has launched an Islamic bond. This issue may result in setting a benchmark for Kazakh sukuk and lay the path for future placement of corporate Islamic bonds. The paper is worth MYR240m ($76.6m) and has benn placed for five years with a yield of 5.5% a year. 38% of the bond are placed in Kazakhstan while the remaining 62% belong to Malaysian investors.

Aproximatly 100 investment projects worth 300 billion roubles have been introduced at the 4th International Summit in Kazan.
The organizers of the forum were the government of Tatarstan, the Islamic Business & Finance Development Foundation (IBFD) with the support of the Federation Council of Russia.
The summit is attended by thousands of guests from over 30 countries of the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation including: Azerbaijan, Bahrain, Egypt, Kazakhstan, Kuwait, Morocco, Turkey, the UAE, Oman, Pakistan.

Al Hilal Islamic Bank and Kazpost JSC signed a general agreement on investment worth 1.5 billion tenge.
It seems that Al Hilal Bank wants to invest 1.5 billion tenge in Kazpost. This is the first contract of this kind in Kazakhstan.

It is possible that the Commonwealth of Independent States will become the next frontier for Islamic finance. At this point, six Muslim republics of the former Soviet Union, Azerbaijan, Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan, Turkmenistan, Kirgizstan and Tajikistan are members of the CIS. Moreover, Russia has also 20m indigenous Muslims in Russia, mostly concentrated in the semi-autonomous Caucasus provinces of Chechnya, Ingushetia, Dagestan, Tatarstan and Bashkortostan.
Although the relationship between Russia and its Muslims wasn't very good, it has started to make concerted efforts to reach out to Turkey, Iran and the Arab nations to the south and Pakistan, Malaysia and the Islamic democracies of South East Asia.

One of the strategic tasks supported by the Government within the Islamic finance development road map contains the development of the Islamic finance in Kazakhstan. A way to increase public and business' awareness of the Islamic finance in Kazakhstan are holding relevant forums and conferences.
An example is the Second Islamic finance forum held in the Kazakh capital at Rixos President Astana hotel on 20 September 2011.
Prospects of attracting foreign investments by means of Islamic financing, its basic tools and mechanism such as sukuk for corporative and public sectors at the Forum were discussed

Mohammad Yahya Maroufi, secretary general of Economic Cooperation Organization (ECO), revealed that his organization has agreed to certify a bank to promote economic cooperation with banks in the Islamic countries.
He added that the plans include to open a trade market for its member states.
The ECO curent members are: Islamic Republic of Iran, Afghanistan, Azerbaijan, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Pakistan, Tajikistan, Turkey, Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan.

The Islamic Corporation for the Development of the Private Sector (ICD) is currently engaged in challenging issues related to the financing of small and medium enterprises (SMEs), and projects providing food security and housing among member countries.
There already are some members that have potential for providing food security so that those who do not have such potential could benefit, and that include countries like Kazakhstan, Sudan and Indonesia.

Malaysia is going to invest in 5 projects from Kazahstan. This projects include investments in a Kazakh Islamic bank, oil and gas exploration by Petronas, cattle breeding, energy generation and the construction of a hotel.
The projects are expxcted to begin as soon as possible.
Jambul district of Kazakhstan and National Feedlot Corp Sdn Bhd signed a Memorandum of Understanding on cattle rearing, while their produce would be exported to Malaysia and neighbouring countries.