IslamicFinance.de

According to a March 2014 data from the Central Statistics Agency, 28 million Indonesians are still below the poverty line, which is defined as living on less than IDR 10,091 (USD 0.86) per day. Of this number, 63% people live in the rural areas, while the remaining 37% have been urbanized. Jamil Abbas, the General Manager of PBMT Social Ventures in Singapore, thinks there is one solution that may be effective in solving this problem, which is through the ‘BMT’ concept. The BMT stands for Baitul Maal wat Tamwil, which can be informally translated to “The House of Social and Business”. BMT is an Indonesian model of Islamic microfinance institution.

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

In a statement to the Tadawul, Bank Aljazira has issued a correction to its financial results for H1 2015. Originally the bank had stated total operating income for Q2 of SAR 612 million. However, after reclassifying gains from the disposal of land, Bank Aljazira says total operating income for Q2 was SAR 1.184 billion. At first the bank had classified the gain of SAR 573 million on the disposal as non-operating income. The gain has now been reclassified as operating revenue on the recommendation of the bank’s external auditors.

Albaraka Turk Katilim Bankasi AS mandates BC Islamic Bank (E.C.), Barwa Bank Q.S.C., Dubai Islamic Bank PJSC, Emirates NBD Capital Limited, Kuwait International Bank ve Standard Chartered Bank for a murabaha syndication loan with a total initial amount of $400 million in EUR and USD currency. The loan is going to have maturity periods of 367 days and 2 years 3 days.

A recent survey carried out by private life insurer Allianz Life Indonesia in Jakarta, Bandung in West Java, Padang in West Sumatra and Samarinda in East Kalimantan showed a high demand for halal insurance products. As many as 97 percent of around 300 respondents agreed that halal investments were important. Furthermore, 93 percent of the respondents felt comfortable with sharia products because they provided transparent investments and profit-sharing schemes in addition to the management, which is according to Islamic principles. 87 percent of respondents had no problem to buy sharia products and 88 percent said it was important to apply religious values, including in financial management.

After years of consultation, discussion, and debate, the sustainable development goals (SDGs) that will guide development efforts for the foreseeable future are close to becoming a reality — meaning a global commitment to end poverty in all its forms everywhere and eliminating extreme poverty entirely by 2030. The Financing for Development (FfD) conference met in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia earlier this month to try to reach an agreement on the right mix of development aid, taxes, loans, trade, and private investment to pay for the ambitious agenda set out in the SDGs. The trillion dollar question is perhaps if we can most effectively unleash the full potential of the global economy in an inclusive, transparent, and collaborative way.

Tunisian firms are preparing to issue Islamic bonds as the government finalises rules covering the sector, creating a new funding option for companies in an economy buffeted by labour unrest and militant attacks. Best Lease aims to raise up to 30 million dinars ($15.6 million) to finance its growth, with Banque Zitouna and El Wifack Leasing also considering sukuk issues. State-owned electricity and water utilities may follow suit, while national carrier Tunisair could tap the market later after clearing legislative hurdles. The government is also preparing to issue its first sovereign sukuk this year. Meanwhile, the IDB is helping to establish an Islamic microfinance institution in Tunisia.

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.

Jaiz Bank Plc, the non-interest Islamic bank, is set to commence operations in Ibadan, Oyo State before the end of this year as it moves to expand its operations in the South West, according to the Group Head, Public Sector of the bank, Mallam Ismail Adamu. He said all documentation and other logistics to this end were already being put in place. Adamu said the bank made a profit of N157m in 2014 and gave out up to N500m in charity through an arm of the bank called JAIZ Foundation. Chairman of the Zonal Committee for the Operation, Alhaji Lasun Sanusi (SAN), said the bank was aware of the teething problems it would face, expressing optimism, however, it would survive because of the success it has so far recorded.

An average of $15.0 billion per year will flow out of the Middle East into direct real estate globally in the near term, according to the latest research from global property advisor CBRE Group, Inc. The Middle Eastern investor base has expanded, fuelled by weakening oil prices; this has led to a major shift in global investment strategies towards greater geographic and sector diversification, with activity spreading across gateway markets to second-tier locations in Europe and the Americas. A greater proportion of Middle Eastern capital is now targeting the US. London, while retaining the top position, is no longer as dominant, with a 32 per cent share of all Middle East outbound investment in 2014, compared to 45 per cent in 2013.

The latest fatwa from the Indonesian Ulema Council (MUI) declaring the national health insurance (JKN) program to be in violation of sharia law is deemed to be misguided, with officials saying that the public should not worry about the program being haram. The MUI issued the edict during an open meeting in Central Java recently, saying that the way the program was run by the Healthcare and Social Security Agency (BPJS Kesehatan) involved elements that were not consistent with sharia law, such as maisir (gambling) and riba (interest). House of Representatives Commission IX overseeing health said that it was up to the government to follow up on the demand by drafting a new regulation.

Lloyd's of London plans to apply for an onshore reinsurance licence and open an office in Malaysia, as part of its push into emerging markets. The licence application follows confirmation from the British and Malaysian governments. It is also targeting the Islamic insurance market. Lloyd's chairman John Nelson said around $130 million in business was written for Malaysia, but said an onshore presence would likely enable that figure to grow, without giving a target. Lloyd's said the licence is an opportunity to develop its marine, energy, construction, engineering and liability business, as well as introduce new products to the market.

Damaan Islamic Insurance Company (Beema) has announced the launch of the first of its kind service in Qatar, which enables its customers to renew or buy their motor insurance over the phone. As one of Qatar’s fastest growing Islamic insurance companies, Beema is taking its customer service to a whole new dimension at no extra cost, said Nasser Al Misnad, Deputy Chief Executive Officer of Beema.

The Thomson Reuters Global Sukuk Index was at 118.20147 points at the end of last month, up from 115.79726 at the end of last year. The Thomson Reuters Investment Grade Sukuk Index was at 116.92144 at end-July against 113.69014 at end-2014. Some of the sukuk in the pipeline are: Kuwait is preparing legislation to facilitate issues of sukuk by the government. Ivory Coast will launch the first tranche of a local currency sukuk programme this year, selling 150 billion CFA francs ($252 million). Malaysia's West Coast Expressway Sdn Bhd plans a guaranteed 1 billion ringgit ($265 million) sukuk murabaha programme to fund a highway project.

GFH has announced to its shareholders and the markets that, in line with its extraordinary general meeting’s approval obtained on April 12, it has completed the formalities with the relevant authorities for changing its commercial name. Accordingly, the name has officially been changed from Gulf Finance House to ‘GFH Financial Group BSC’ starting on July 30th. The Islamic investment bank is based in Bahrain and was listed on the London Stock Exchange in 2007. The company also holds a 25 per cent stake in Leeds United, a Football League Championship club through its wholly owned subsidiary, the Dubai-based GFH Capital.

Muslim investors have been urged to pour money into major British construction projects as David Cameron revealed a catalogue of sharia-compliant opportunities. UK Trade and Investment has produced a "pitch book" containing details of 18 projects which comply with the strict conditions of Islamic law. A total of £17 billion of projects are included in the document, with schemes including a transport upgrade project in Leeds, the regeneration of Slough town centre and housing developments in Manchester. At a lavish reception in Kuala Lumpur, Mr Cameron set out his vision of making the UK a centre for Islamic finance.

The State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) held a signing ceremony for Financial Innovation Challenge Fund (FICF) on promoting excellence in Islamic finance in Pakistan under its financial inclusion programme funded by the UK’s Department for International Development (DFID). The signing ceremony marks the beginning of the implementation phase of the FICF innovative Islamic finance education and research projects in partnership with higher education institutions which was earlier launched by Finance Minister Ishaq Dar on January 9, 2015. At the ceremony, three projects were signed with Institute of Business Administration (IBA), Lahore University of Management Sciences (LUMS) and Institute of Management Sciences (IM Sciences).

UK Trade & Investment (UKTI), a Government Department which helps UK-based companies succeed in the global economy, has released a brochure which contains Sharia compliant UK regeneration investment opportunities in the UK. The Regeneration Investment Organisation (RIO) has identified projects at a point of development where project and finance structure can be discussed with project promoters. These projects are listed in the brochure in their totality: some parts may not be Sharia-compliant. Meanwhile, Islamic finance investors are taking a keen interest in UK real estate by funding a number of high profile projects.

Kuveyt Turk has issued Sukuk totalling TRY 160 million ($58.4 million) with a tenor of 189 days. The bank said that the initial public offering attracted a record-­breaking number of subscribers and is its largest issue to date. The Sukuk was issued by KT Kira Sertifikalar? Varl?k Kiralama A.?., a 100 per cent subsidiary of Kuveyt Turk, Halk Yat?r?m Menkul De?erler A.?. was the consortium lead and Bizim Menkul De?erler A.?. was the consortium partner in the issuance. Ufuk Uyan, CEO of Kuveyt Turk, said, that at the end of the maturity, the underlying assets shall be transferred back to the sourcing entity. The principal and lease yield shall be paid to the investors in one go at maturity.

Dubai Bank PJSC wants to sell its shareholding in BankIslami Pakistan, a stock filing said on Wednesday. Another shareholder, Jahangir Siddiqui and Company, reported that it has received a letter from the UAE-based bank, saying it wants to sell 144.2 million shares in BankIslami Pakistan. The stake that Dubai Bank PJSC wants to sell constitutes 14.3% of the total issued shares of BankIslami Pakistan. Dubai Bank is offering its stake to Jahangir Siddiqui and Company and another (unnamed) shareholder of BankIslami Pakistan under its shareholders’ agreement that mandates a right of first refusal on a proportionate basis.