IslamicFinance.de

L’assurance islamique, dite “takaful”, débarque en Algérie grâce à la compagnie Salama Assurances Algérie. La compagnie algérienne prévoit de lancer des produits d’assurance islamique, soit l’équivalent de la mutualité, dans un proche avenir, comme l’a indiqué Abdelhakim Hadjou, son directeur général. Selon ce dernier, le fait que la législation algérienne n’encadre pas encore ce type d’assurances ne sera pas un frein à la commercialisation de ce service. Il peut y avoir dans les mois à venir un intérêt. On a même parlé de cela au Parlement avec la participation des banques. Il y a eu débat sur l’opportunité de légiférer sur le takaful, a-t-il ainsi déclaré.

Malaysia-based International Islamic Liquidity Management Corp (IILM) will raise $790 million through its Islamic bond programme next week, according to a filing with the central bank. The IILM, a consortium of central banks from Asia, the Middle East and Africa, will auction a three-month $390 million sukuk and a six-month $400 million sukuk on Monday Aug. 25. IILM last went to the market in July to re-issue $860 million worth of three-month papers, in order to meet a shortage of highly liquid, investment-grade financial instruments which Islamic banks can trade to manage their short-term funding needs.

London-based Gatehouse Bank has purchased the leasehold interest in the Marriott Residence Inn ("Residence Inn"), Manhattan, New York for an undisclosed amount. The Bank, assisted by Arch Street Capital Advisors, LLC, has acquired the property in partnership with a US-based hotel operator. The Residence Inn is a 17-storey, recently redeveloped building located on 48th Street in Midtown East, Manhattan. The property features 211 guestrooms of multiple room configurations including studios, suites and a penthouse. All rooms include a fully equipped kitchen. The Residence Inn is an extended stay, select service brand of Marriott International that is among the strongest performing brands under the Marriott umbrella.

Moody's Investors Service, has today affirmed the Ba1 insurance financial strength rating (IFSR) of National Takaful Insurance Company K.S.C., based in Kuwait. The rating outlook was changed to stable from positive following the decline in the shareholders' and policyholders' (consolidated) equity in 2013. Moody's Ba1 rating reflects National Takaful's good position, with a top-three market share in the domestic Takaful market. The rating affirmation also reflects the recent improvement in underwriting profitability. This has restricted further deterioration in the policyholders' fund. However the change in outlook to stable from positive reflects the decline in consolidated equity.

The Nigerian Exchange Traded Funds (ETF) market has shown potential for growth, though many investors are yet to recognise its promise. In the less than four years since the market recorded its first entrants into the ETF space, there are three Exchange Traded products valued at N3.209 billion or 0.0178 percent of the total market capitalisation of the Nigerian Stock Exchange (NSE) as at August 6, 2014. Comparison of statutory charges (sell side) on equities against ETFs shows a difference of 0.5964 percent in favour of ETFs; while on the buy side, the charges are the same. On the sell side, charges to equities are 0.7050 percent, while ETFs are 0.1086 percent; on the buy side, the charges are same at 0.3750 percent.

A Takaful insurance operator is to strategically consider the maturity matching approach as an investment mechanism in dealing with liquidity issues of the business at hand. Moreover, the issue of distribution of surplus in Takaful comes only after fulfilling or meeting the Shariah obligation of helping participants who have become victims of various risk crystallization. The Accounting and Auditing Organization for Islamic Financial Institutions (AAOIFI) brought out a valid suggestions on adopting the principle of Iltizam bil Tabarru (pledge or commitment to donate). This gives the participants the ownership rights over the scheme while still having the firm commitment of mutual assistance (Ta’awuni) on the premise that a balance, if any, will be returned by the fund manager for distribution between the donating participants or owners of the fund in proportion to their initial contribution.

Social Islami Bank Limited (SIBL) arranged a Strategic Business Planning Session to evaluate business position and formulate future business strategy of some chosen branches of the bank at its corporate head office in the city recently. Chairman of the Bank Major (Retd.), Dr. Md. Rezaul Haque, was present in the session as the chief guest while Managing Director of the bank, Md. Shafiqur Rahman, presided over the programme.

Malaysia Airports Holdings’ plan to sell perpetual sukuk highlights rising interest in the debt from companies looking to shore up their balance sheets. The manager of all of Malaysia’s 39 airports will hold an investor presentation for the offer on Aug. 25. It will be the nation’s first sale of rated ringgit Islamic bonds with no set maturity following unrated issues by Malaysian Airline System in 2012 and Boustead Holdings in June. Perpetual bonds, which rating companies treat as equity, have been becoming more popular as they allow issuers to raise money without damaging their creditworthiness and offer higher yields to investors. Moreover, it’s more cost efficient because the transaction is tax deductible.

More Islamic banks are expected to issue sukuks eligible for Additional Tier (AT1) capital over the next two years as countries start to implement Basel III, according to Standard & Poor's Ratings Services. Over the past two years, there have been Tier 1 sukuk issuances from three UAE Islamic banks that reportedly qualify as Additional Tier 1 (AT1) capital under Basel III. The oversubscription rates of these three Tier 1 sukuk and their tight pricing suggest a very strong market appetite, which S&P expects to linger unless market conditions shift over the next few months. The introduction of a liquidity coverage ratio might address some of the industry's long-standing weaknesses, particularly the lack of high quality liquid assets.

Khazanah Nasional Bhd., Malaysia’s state-owned investment fund, has sold 1.5 billion ringgit ($476 million) of Islamic bonds. The firm priced the five-year debt to yield 4.14 percent, within its earlier guidance of 4.1 percent to 4.18 percent. The issuance is part of a 7 billion ringgit program to raise funds for corporate purposes. Khazanah will issue the new debt via its unit Rantau Abang Capital Bhd. It’s the second time this year that the company has tapped the ringgit sukuk market after selling 15-year securities in March at a coupon of 5.2 percent. Khazanah is in the process of buying up the 30.6 percent stake in Malaysian Airline System that it doesn’t already own.

A blueprint being drawn up for Indonesia’s Islamic finance industry may include incentives to help revive the domestic market for sukuk. Indonesia’s financial services authority, Otoritas Jasa Keuangan (OJK), is preparing a five-year plan for the sector to help it expand. The document is expected to be ready for public consultation by year-end, and will address issues including a lack of scale in the industry, sector consolidation and the role of foreign ownership. The regulator is also exploring ways to revive a sukuk market, which has seen no corporate issuers so far this year. The reasons for the drop-off in activity are not clear, but may be related to higher costs involved in issuing sukuk, a lack of experience among arranging banks, or a lack of regulatory clarity.

International Bank of Azerbaijan (IBA), 50.2% owned by Ministry of Finance, is preparing to launch a separate sharia-compliant banking unit as the former Soviet state prepares an Islamic banking law slated for next spring. A stand-alone unit would allow IBA to more than quadruple its Islamic financing business in the country. IBA has thus far extended $180 million of Islamic financing in the country; after legislation is passed, this could increase to as much as $750 million within a year. IBA also wants to create a strong domestic Islamic banking platform for use with its subsidiaries in Russia, Georgia and Qatar. IBA has hired Bahrain-based consultancy Shariyah Review Bureau to help in the design of several projects.

SEDCO Capital announced assigning the External Shari’a Audit of its $160 million real estate funds to Shariyah Review Bureau (SRB). The two funds which SRB will be periodically auditing the implementation of the Shari’a h guidelines are SEDCO Capital Partners Group Opportunities Fund and SEDCO Capital Real Estate Income Fund I. SRB will independently ensure that the investments, Zakah verification, implementation of the modalities and reporting functions are conducted in accordance with the Shari’a guidelines set out by SEDCO Capital Shari’a Supervisory Board.

Lamido Sanusi was crowned Muhammadu Sanusi II, the 14th Emir of Kano in June, taking over from Ado Abdullahi Bayero after his death. A grandson of the 11th Emir of Kano and prince in the royal family, Sanusi was Central Bank governor from 2009 to 2013, when President Goodluck Jonathan suspended him after he exposed massive corruption at the state oil firm. His first months have shown the major challenges he faces: a string of suicide bombings, carried out by women, forced him to cancel the traditional end of Ramadan celebrations called the Durbar. The Islamist Boko Haram insurgency is increasingly targeting Kano. Sanusi also faces possible civil unrest in Kano if Goodluck Jonathan, a Christian southerner seen by many northerners as divisive, wins another term in 2015 elections.

Bank Sohar’s Islamic banking Window – Sohar Islamic has now introduced dedicated Construction Financing in Oman. The Construction Finance product provides an Islamic finance solution for anyone looking to build a new residential property or purchase under construction property. This is a complement to its existing Islamic Home Finance Program which offers Shari’ah compliant financing for ready real estate property. The Construction Finance program comes within a flexible framework catering to the financing needs of customers with financing up to 80% of the price within a financing period reaching up to 25 years. In addition, preferential profit rates are provided to customers for the 1st and 2nd year along with the facility to takeover. If required, installment deferment options are also available.

Six years after the economic crisis there is still much cynicism and anger directed at the conventional banks. People across the globe have a hunger for a more ethical, transparent and robust financial system. This has opened a window of opportunity for Islamic banks to emerge as a values-driven alternative to conventional banks. However, Islamic Bank deposits are minuscule compared to those held by conventional banks. Few can dispute that the lack of standardisation has held back Islamic finance. But there is a far more fundamental issue that today’s Islamic banks need to address: Catching up with new trends. Unless Islamic banks clearly define their differences from conventional banks, in moral and value terms, and are easily understood by Muslims and non-Muslims, the promise that Islamic banking can offer the world a better way of banking will have no more substance than a mirage in the desert.

A new study by International Finance Corporation (IFC) showed that around 35 per cent of SMEs in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) are excluded from the formal banking sector because they seek Sharia-compliant products that are not readily available in the market. The study, which was carried out across nine countries, found a potential market gap of up to $13.2 billion for SME Islamic financing in the region with a corresponding depository potential of $9.71 billion to $15.05 billion across these countries. The study pointed out that apart from a high level of risk aversion that banks in the region have, poor regulatory environments, differing perceptions of Islamic finance, and a lack of relevant products were hindering the growth of Islamic SME banking.

The Council of Saudi Chambers has launched a series of awards for businesswomen with the main objectives to support and encourage Saudi businesswomen to take a more prominent role in the Kingdom’s economy. The awards will highlight achievements in three categories: ‘Leading Young Businesswoman,’ ‘Leading Businesswoman,’ and ‘Productive Families.’ The nominations will be submitted electronically and that no preference will be given to particular geographic regions within the Kingdom. The jury will not include members of the Council, however, in order to ensure the awards are unbiased. Nominations for the awards will closed on September 10. Results will be announced in 2015 to coincide with the Second National Forum.

Although uouth under the age of 25 represent the clients of tomorrow, many financial institutions steer clear from viewing youth as customers because it is difficult to serve them in a profitable manner. For financial service providers looking to offer savings products to young clients while still making a profit, there are factors at three levels that affect profitability: the market level, the institutional level, and the client-segment level. Ultimately, these three levels drive costs and revenues for FSPs. As more financial institutions begin to enter the youth savings market, it can be improved and augmented by data. The business case is dynamic and will evolve as more FSPs operate in competitive markets with long-term visions looking at the young people of today as tomorrow’s customers.

Islamic lender Bank Asya has received another blow, as the Customs and Trade Ministry has joined with two other state institutions in cancelling their contract with the bank. The ministry has decided to terminate customs tax collection protocols with Bank Asya as a result of assessments made, the ministry said in a press statement released on Aug. 13. The ministry informed the lender regarding the annulment on Aug. 12 and the cancellation will take effect on Sept. 12, the statement also noted. Last week, the Revenue Administration and Social Security Institution had separately announced annulling their contracts with the lender.