IslamicFinance.de

Tabreed is nearing an agreement with creditors on a restructuring plan worth more than Dh5 billion.
Sources say Tabreed is just weeks away from a possible restructuring pact. The company spent billions of dollars building cooling plants, but amid the downturn, revenue from many of its projects did not materialise as expected.

General Electric International Incorporation may tap the Islamic bond market again in "the near future," after the company last year became the first U.S. corporate to issue a sukuk.
GE Capital, the company's financial arm, sold $500 million in sukuk in November last year for general corporate funding.

The Central Bank of the UAE has announced the successful inaugural auction of Shariah-Compliant Certificates of Deposit (ICDs).
The inaugural auction was held on Wednesday, 10th November 2010. The ICDs, which are based on Murabahah concept, are the first Islamic liquidity management tools issued by the Central Bank of the UAE.
The ICDs are the first Islamic liquidity management tools issued by the Central Bank of the UAE.

In order to recover from the repercussions of the global fiscal crisis, family businesses in Gulf oil producers need foreign financial and technical assistance.
Nazem Al Kudsi, CEO of the government-owned Invest AD, said such a development and the strong demand for private capital make the Gulf one of the best destination for local and foreign capital.

The United Arab Emirates needs to boost investment in the agriculture sector, which can supply only 37 per cent of its annual food demand and makes it vulnerable to fluctuating prices.
In 2008 the UAE was forced up to import their bills. Since then they are trying to improve security of food supplies.

A rebound in Gulf Islamic bond market depends on the performance of the property prices.
Real estate prices in Dubai have tumbled more than 50 percent since their 2008 peak and 30 percent in neighboring Abu Dhabi as banks tightened mortgage lending and speculators fled the market.
The average yield on Sukuk sold by GCC issuers rose six basis points yesterday to 5.37 percent, paring its decline this quarter to 72 points.
Since Sept. 30 the difference between the average yield for emerging-market Sukuk and the London interbank offered rate widened 0.8 basis point to 336.6 yesterday and has narrowed 36 points.

Islamic private equity funds in the Persian Gulf plan to take advantage of lower asset prices after the property market in Dubai tumbled as much as 50 percent from its peak in 2008.
The National and Kipco Asset Management Co., a Kuwaiti investment bank, started a $200 million Shariah-compliant fund this month, Yahya Jalil, director of private equity at Abu Dhabi-based investment and advisory company The National Investor, said. Bahrain’s Capital Management House plans to complete a transaction and buy stakes in companies specializing in aviation and energy, Chairman Khalid Al Bassam said.

Agha & Co (the Firm), a Shariah compliant legal consultancy established by Oliver Ali Agha, commenced operation in Dubai in May 2010 and is scheduled to have a formal office inauguration on October 25, 2010. Previously, Agha and Dr. Saeed Mohammed Al-Shamsi established Agha & Shamsi, an affiliated firm, in Abu Dhabi. The Firm and its affiliate are said to be the first Shariah compliant legal consultancies established globally.
Agha & Co’s strategic position in the UAE, fast becoming a major commercial hub for the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC), includes a network of affiliation arrangements with leading law firms both internationally.
Agha & Co’s partners have previously lead practice areas at top Am Law 50 and top tier English firms, and are well-respected in the fields of Islamic Finance, Islamic Law, Corporate (including cross-border M&A), Projects, Project Finance, Energy, Public-Private Placements (PPPs), Commercial Transactions, Capital Markets, Islamic Funds & Private Equity, Restructuring, Insurance (Takaful), Arbitration and Dispute Resolution.

A recent survey conducted by YouGov Siraj, to understand consumer banking preferences in the region, with a focus on Islamic banking, revealed that 54 percent of consumers cannot differentiate between Islamic and conventional banking services. The reason cited was both banks provide similar products and services.
The findings are crucial particularly, during a period when Islamic banks are differentiat-ing themselves with a renewed emphasis on fundamental ethics at the heart of Islamic banking model.
The survey has also been conducted with an aim to answer an important question: “Would the average customer prefer a bank that promises moral salvation or one which offers friendly, convenient service, value for money, and an envy inducing credit card?” The complete results of the survey will be released exclusively at the International Islamic Finance Forum

For Immediate Release:

Oak Brook, Illinois – April 3, 2010
H.H. Sheikh Ahmed Bin Zayed Al Nahayan

The World Congress of Muslim Philanthropists expresses its most profound sympathy on the recent loss of one of the leading Muslim philanthropists, H.H. Sheikh Ahmed Bin Zayed Al Nahayan, the Chairman of the Zayed Bin Sultan Al Nahayan Charitable and Humanitarian Foundation.

Sheikh Ahmed was the head of Abu Dhabi Investment Authority (ADIA), rated among the world's top state-run investment establishment. He was a brilliant entrepreneur and a devoted humanitarian who will be remembered dearly by all of us.

Under Sheikh Ahmed’s visionary leadership, The Zayed Foundation has made an impact that was truly global. Several initiatives aimed at issues such as poverty, scarcity of clean water, preventable disease, and aggravation of war impacts was launched in some of the poorest economies.

The Congress joins people of the United Arab Emirates in mourning the demise of Sheikh Ahmed and prays to Almighty Allah for granting eternal peace to the departed soul and grant solace to the bereaved Al Nahyan family. Ameen.

-----The End-----

Investors could welcome the commencement of trading of Tamweel stock once the government releases the details of the company's merger with Amlak, analysts said Sunday.

The government of Abu Dhabi and the Central Bank of the UAE has announced that it has agreed to provide $10 billion to the Dubai Financial Support Fund.

The Dubai Financial Support Fund can therefore enable Nakheel to pay its Sukuk due today.

Dubai World, a conglomerate owned by the government of Dubai, is asking its creditors for a six-month “standstill” on its obligations. Dubai World includes Nakheel, which has USD 4 bn in outstanding Islamic debt falling due next month.

Press Release of S&P:

We are assigning our preliminary 'AA' rating to TDIC Sukuk Ltd.'s certificates issuance program, under which it can issue up to $1.45 billion certificates (sukuk al-ijara).

The rating is equal to, and is fully reliant on, the rating on Tourism Development and Investment Company.

LONDON, October 1, 2009--Standard & Poor's Ratings Services today said it had assigned its preliminary 'AA' rating to TDIC Sukuk Ltd.'s certificates issuance program, under which it can issue up to $1.45 billion certificates (sukuk al-ijara). The rating is equal to, and is fully reliant on, the rating on Tourism Development and Investment Company (TDIC; AA/Stable/A-1+). The preliminary rating is based on information as of Oct. 1, 2009. Subsequent information may result in the assignment of final ratings that differ from the preliminary ratings.

National Bank of Abu Dhabi (NBAD) plans to launch the Middle East’s first exchange-traded fund to try to attract more international investors. The fund, known as an ETF, will be listed on the Abu Dhabi Securities Exchange (ADX) in two months, a senior NBAD official said. It will be licensed by a leading global index provider and will track some of the Gulf’s 50 biggest stocks, said Giyas Gokkent, NBAD’s co-head of asset management and chief economist.

Abu Dhabi-based Dolphin Energy has signed USD 3 bn of loans that will part refinance a USD 3.45 bn debt facility maturing in July, it is also finalising an Islamic tranche worth about USD 500 mn and is preparing to launch a bond worth USD 500 mn to USD 1 bn.

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.

Stanley Carvalho reported in Arabianbusiness on 29 March that Abu Dhabi Islamic Bank became the fourth Abu Dhabi bank to announce it has secured financing from the Ministry of Finance. ADIB secured AED 2.2 bn of government deposits and converted it into regulatory capital following similar moves by rivals in the credit crisis.

With the conversion into Tier 2 capital, ADIB's total equity increases to AED 11.02 bn and its capital adequacy ratio (CAR) will be 19.75 percent.

Tiras Mahmoud is CEO of ADIB.

Abu Dhabi Investment House shifted its direction in 2008 towards the 'real economy', which includes health, agriculture, communications and clean energy sectors. The company increasingly changed its strategy in 2005, 2006 and 2007 from traditional investment, real estate and financial markets methods included the 'Vision 3' alliance between Abu Dhabi Investment House, Gulf Finance House and Ithmaar Bank.

The goal of the alliance is to benefit from the combined expertise in the identification of investment opportunities within the hospitality, infrastructure and agricultural sectors, including InfraCapital, the GGC's first Islamic investment bank focused on infrastructure and AgriCap, a fund given over to the development of numerous agricultural projects. The AED 400 mn Al Joud fund, the new GCC listed equities fund, performed very well.

Until now, the company did not venture into America or European markets and is considering capitalising on distressed assets in these markets.

PRESS RELEASE

Conventional to Strategic: A New Paradigm in Giving

March 22-23, 2009 • Abu Dhabi, UAE

Abu Dhabi, UAE: The 2nd World Congress of Muslim Philanthropists (WCMP) concluded today after several key developments had been achieved that indicate an evolution in Muslim giving. The WCMP is a high-level network of donors and foundations established to promote informed and effective giving. The annual Congress itself is a unique event which brings together a diverse set of participants, with the hope that enhanced cooperation between different philanthropies through strategic partnerships will add profound value to address global challenges that affect both humanity and the environment.

Dr. Tariq Cheema, the founder of the WCMP, affirms that the World Congress of Muslim Philanthropists (WCMP)' brings together leaders who understand the risks and opportunities they have are common as global citizens, and therefore realize that collaboration across the lines of faith and race is a necessity and not merely a choice'.

Developments