IslamicFinance.de

The Islamic version of a Real Estate Investment Trust (REIT) has to follow certain principles and rules in accordance with Shariah law. Malaysia was the first country that issued guidelines for Islamic REITS as early as in 2005, whereby a Shariah committee has to assess any property to be acquired by an Islamic REIT towards non-permissible activities of prospective tenants and sub-tenants. However, a certain quota of non-permissible activities is sometimes tolerated. The Middle East also started to adapt the new concept of Islamic REITs. However, the products have not developed as rapidly as in Southeast Asia and are still more or less handled as a regional collective investment scheme.

The BNP Paribas - INCEIF Centre for Islamic Wealth Management (CIWM) and Labuan International Business and Financial Centre (Labuan IBFC) held their 2nd annual Islamic Wealth Management Symposium on 28 April 2015 in Kuala Lumpur, aimed at raising national awareness of Islamic wealth management, particularly Islamic trusts and foundations. The Symposium also marked the public unveiling of Labuan IBFC's international waqf foundation, the first Islamic foundation designed with the international market in mind. The Symposium attracted more than 150 delegates. A total of 12 speakers and panelists ranging from regulators, Islamic scholars, academics and industry practitioners, convened to discuss Islamic wealth management.

European Islamic Investment Bank plc ('EIIB-Rasmala'), the London-listed asset management and financing group focused on the growth markets of the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC), has announced its full year financial results for the year ended 31 December 2014. The total operating income was US$16.4 million compared to US$15.4 million a year before. Profit before tax from continuing operations was US$2.3 million (2013: US$2.23 million). Total assets under management (AUM) stood at US$1.11 billion. EIIB-Rasmala expects to invest about US$1 billion in broad mix of property transactions and grow the leasing and alternatives business to over US$1.5 billion in the next 24 months.

The Thomson Reuters Global Sukuk Index is at 118.66237 points, up from 117.52672 at the end of last month and 115.79726 at the end of last year. The Thomson Reuters Investment Grade Sukuk Index is at 117.64818 against 116.23259 at end-March and 113.69014 at end-2014. Sukuk in the pipeline include: Malaysian plantation company Kuala Lumpur Kepong will raise up to 1.6 billion ringgit from Islamic bonds. Malaysia Building Society plans its third issue of covered sukuk worth 900 million ringgit. PT Bank BNI Syariah, the Islamic subsidiary of state lender PT Bank Negara Indonesia, plans to issue sukuk mudaraba with a three-year tenor worth up to 750 billion rupiah ($58.3 million) in an offer on May 18 and 19.

The Thomson Reuters Global Sukuk Index is at 118.66237 points, up from 117.52672 at the end of last month and 115.79726 at the end of last year. The Thomson Reuters Investment Grade Sukuk Index is at 117.64818 against 116.23259 at end-March and 113.69014 at end-2014. Some of the sukuk in the pipeline are: Kuveyt Turk said in late April it would apply to the Capital Markets Board for permission to issue up to 1 billion lira ($370 million) of sukuk. The Islamic Corporation for the Development of the Private Sector said in late April it would lead manage a 300 billion CFA franc ($480 million) Islamic bond programme for Ivory Coast. Malaysia's Khazanah Nasional plans the first tranche of a 1 billion ringgit ($276 million) sukuk issue as early as May.

Equinix, the global interconnection and data center company, addressed the challenges and opportunities facing the Takaful industry in the region by taking part in the recently held World Takaful Conference, the world's largest gathering of Islamic insurance leaders, held in Dubai. James Maudslay, Global Head of Insurance, Equinix spoke about trends in the Takaful market with a key address on 'Sustainable market growth - Looking at opportunities for innovating the Takaful market offering'. Maudslay explained how technology can transform and grow the Takaful market by assisting with data recording, process control, reporting, regulatory inconsistencies, maximising data collection and storage.

The Capital Markets Authority (CMA) is planning to allow in foreign investors from June 15. Mohammad Al Jadaan, chairman of CMA, expects a lot of benefits from the entry of foreign players into its stock markets. It is expected that the level of studies, research and evaluation done on the market in general and on the listed companies in particular would be higher which would provide more accurate information and more fair assessments, he said. This would also help to raise the level of the research and studies on the Saudi capital market, he added. The CMA is expected to publish the rules for foreign institutions on May 4, while rules will be effective June 1, and the QFIs will be allowed to invest in listed shares starting from June 15.

The Islamic Financial Services Board (IFSB), the prudential and supervisory standard-setting body for the estimated US2.3 trillion global Islamic finance industry, convenes its 12th Annual Summit on 19 - 21 May 2015 at the Rixos Almaty in Kazakhstan. The Summit, which is hosted by the National Bank of Kazakhstan, could not have a more pertinent theme: 'Core Principles for Islamic Finance: Integrating with the Global Regulatory Framework.' Indeed, the Council of the IFSB at its 26th Meeting, held in Jakarta, Indonesia in early April, approved the adoption of a new Standard on Core Principles for Islamic Finance Regulation (CPIFR)(Banking Segment), known as IFSB-17.

Jordan chose the Islamic Corporation for the Development of the Private Sector (ICD), an arm of the Jeddah-based Islamic Development Bank, to support the country's debut sovereign issue of sukuk. The ICD will provide "transaction technical support" for the domestic issue of Jordanian dinar-denominated sukuk, which is expected this year. The sukuk will be used to absorb excess liquidity held by Jordan's Islamic banks, which is estimated to total 1.4 billion dinars ($2 billion). Khaled Al-Aboodi, chief executive of the ICD, said the issue would help to develop Jordan's capital market and provide an alternative to its Treasury bills for investment by Islamic banks.

Geopolitical entanglements and new Cold War era tussles with the west, compounded by lower oil prices, have brought the Russian economy to its knees. Investment prospects for the Eurasian giant appear bleak, with credit ratings agencies Standard & Poor's and Moody's downgrading its economy to 'junk' status earlier this year. For support Russia is turning its attention to the Muslim populations of its various republics. Around 14 per cent of Russians follow Islam. However, the tradition of centralisation in the Russian Federation offered until now little room for the growth of Islamic finance. This, however, appears to be changing.

Triggered by rapidly growing demand for Islamic financial instruments, Shariah-compliant exchange-traded funds (Islamic ETFs, or iETFs) are beginning to add potential to the portfolios of Muslim and ethical investors. Malaysia last week came up with the first regional Islamic ETF that will include Shariah-compliant stocks from Malaysia, Singapore, Indonesia, Thailand and the Philippines. It is being launched by investment firm i-VCAP Management. The region is joining the growing number of Islamic ETFs provided by large investment companies. The latest addition to the Islamic ETF family was an iETF launched by Seattle-based investment firm Falah Capital in October last year.

The significant premium growth in the global takaful sector is expected to continue and reach $20 billion by 2017, with the majority of that increase coming from Malaysia and Saudi Arabia, according to A M Best. A M Best said in its report that despite the rapid growth of takaful on a global basis, it has struggled to take hold in Middle East markets, other than Saudi Arabia, which are considered to be concentrated with a few large players dominating their respective markets. Moreover, a number of challenges remain, including market conditions that leave takaful operators subject to fierce pricing competition from more established insurers that benefit from brand awareness and more established distribution networks.

Bahrain's Gulf Finance House will study the continuation of its equity listings in London and Kuwait. The investment firm is listed in four places, a potentially costly arrangement: Dubai Financial Market, where its shares are often the market's most heavily traded, Bahrain, Kuwait, and London in the form of global depository receipts. Moreover, shareholders approved reducing the firm's capital to $598 million from $1.49 billion to eliminate accumulated losses, and the company will change its name to GFH Financial Group. GFH did not give details of what its review would involve or say when it might be completed.

The Thomson Reuters Global Sukuk Index is at 118.53448 points, up from 117.52672 at the end of last month and 115.79726 at the end of last year. The Thomson Reuters Investment Grade Sukuk Index is at 117.5576 against 116.23259 at end-March and 113.69014 at end-2014. Sukuk in the pipeline include: Malaysia's Axis REIT said in early April that it had expanded its sukuk programme to 3.0 billion ringgit ($818 million) from 300 million ringgit, and extended the length to perpetual from 15 years. Kazakhstan's Finance Ministry is expected soon to propose a draft law allowing its first sovereign sukuk issue, which will probably take place early next year.

The Islamic Financial Services Board (IFSB) successfully organised a 'Seminar on Enhancing Financial Inclusion through Islamic Finance' on 31 March 2015 in Jakarta, Indonesia. This Seminar is organised in conjunction with the IFSB Annual Meetings and Side Events 2015. The one-day Seminar aimed to explore the role of Islamic finance in supporting financial inclusion, the building blocks necessary for the development and promotion of access to finance to the uncovered population and key success factors and challenges in promoting financial inclusion for greater shared prosperity, financial stability and economic growth. The Seminar was followed by the IFSB's 8th Public Lecture on Financial Policy and Stability on 1 April 2015.

Kuwait investment firm Aayan Leasing and Investment has asked creditors to reschedule its remaining debts worth 176 million dinars ($587 million), chairman Fahd Ali al-Ghanim said. As part of the restructuring plan, Aayan planned to liquidate some of its portfolio of listed Kuwaiti companies, Ghanim said. However, many of the shares are still trading below the value at which they were bought, Ghanim said, adding this helped to explain why Aayan was seeking a further debt rescheduling. Despite rebounding slightly in 2013 and 2014, Kuwait's stock market is still trading 60 percent lower than its June 2008 peak.

Russia is trying to increase its cooperation with the UAE, especially in Islamic finance, as the country is seeking to strengthen its trade ties with the UAE and other Gulf countries, according to Igor Egorov, the Chairman of the Russian Business Council. Egorov said the country has brought in new regulations to attract Islamic financial institutions from the Middle East and Asia as demand for financing grows in Russia. He added that the trade figures between Russia and the UAE stand at $2 billion and are set to grow in the coming days. Moreover, the Eurasian Economic Union provides opportunity for UAE companies to invest.

Bahrain-based Waqf Fund hosted its eighth Shari'a Scholar session with Islamic finance scholar Professor Dr. Akram Laldin from Malaysia. Dr. Laldin serves on several Shari'a Boards including Bank Negara Malaysia's Shari'a Advisory Council, AAOIFI and a number of Islamic financial institutions in Malaysia and globally. The topic under discussion was "The Challenges of Achieving Shari'a Compliance in Islamic Finance". Dr. Laldin made a presentation on the key challenges in Shari'a compliance and narrated a number of real life cases from his experience as a Shari'a Board member. This was followed by an interactive session during which the participants asked questions and gave their comments.

National Bank of Abu Dhabi managed around $3.9 billion (Dh14.3 billion) of international Sukuk issuance in the first quarter of 2015, representing about 69 per cent of the global market by value. In the first three months of 2015, NBAD worked on four major deals. In addition to acting as a bookrunner on the UKEF-backed Sukuk closed by Emirates Airlines, the Bank also acted as Joint Bookrunner on International Sukuk issuances by Dubai Islamic Bank, Islamic Development Bank and the Government of Ras Al Khaimah.

Islamic International Rating Agency ( IIRA ) has assigned ratings of 'A/A1' (Single A / A One) to Dubai Islamic Bank ( DIB ) on the international scale. On the national scale, ratings have been assessed at AA-(ae)/A1+(ae) (Double AMinus / A One Plus). Outlook on the assigned ratings is 'Stable'. Ratings are supported by DIB 's strong franchise and retail market presence, ensuring steady access to cost effective funding. The recent tier-1 capital issue in early 2015 has reinforced capital adequacy ratio to 18.5%. The fiduciary score has been assessed in the range of '76-80', which indicates strong fiduciary standards, wherein rights of various stakeholders are well defined and protected.