IslamicFinance.de

Sharia insurance products have gained in prominence and are steadily securing a foothold in Indonesia, the world's largest Muslim country of more than 200 million. The large Muslim population offers vast, untapped potential for takaful products. However, total takaful insurance and reinsurance gross premiums have stayed low, compared with the entire Indonesian insurance market. Takaful has expanded to account for 6.2% of Indonesia's insurance market by gross written premiums (GWPs) as of end- 2015, from 2.6% as of end-2010. The sector's GWP expanded by around 4.1% to around IDR10.5trn in 2015, slower than the previous year amid a slowdown in the country's real GDP growth but outperforming the conventional insurance product segment that had more modest growth of 1.6%.

Bank Negara Malaysia governor Tan Sri Dr Zeti Akhtar Aziz is likely to leave when her term expires in April. Zeti said she had not received any request to stay on amid the current market volatility, a scenario which had fuelled speculation that her contract may be extended. She stressed that it was "very unlikely" for her term to be extended again, as the succession process is already underway. Zeti, who has served as governor for 16 years, was however tight-lipped on who her successor would be, saying she is not at liberty to discuss the matter. She, however, said the central bank will remain independent even with the appointment of a new governor. Zeti stressed that a politician should not be appointed as governor of the central bank.

A group of six Malaysian Islamic banks has launched a sharia-compliant investment platform that could shift the role of Islamic lenders to investment intermediaries from credit providers currently. The Investment Account Platform (IAP) will serve as a central marketplace to finance small and medium-sized businesses, with the Malaysian government backing the scheme with an initial RM150 million in funds. Chief executive Mohamed Izam Mohamed Yusof said they were looking at raising between RM200 million and RM300 million (US$47.53 million to US$71.29 million) through the IAP over the next two to three years. Its maiden project could be listed as early as next month, with future plans including listings in other currencies, he added.

Indonesia fund management companies are readying to market Islamic/shariah-based mutual funds that will invest in offshore instruments. This follows Indonesia’s regulation, announced late last year, that allows shariah mutual funds to use at least 51 per cent of their investment components in offshore instruments such as bonds and stocks. The move is seen to allow investors an option to diversify their investments and deepen the country’s shariah mutual funds market. In addition to this, the government also allowed these funds to invest up to 100 per cent of their shariah mutual funds units in overseas bonds. With the change in regulations, a host of fund management firms have announced their plans to launch products that will invest in offshore instruments.

The Responsible Finance Summit has announced the support of the International Shari'ah Research Academy for Islamic Finance (ISRA) for the Summit. The Summit, which will be hosted by Bank Negara Malaysia, will include the participation of ISRA's Executive Director Prof. Dr. Mohamad Akram Laldin, who will join a panel session on the popular perceptions about responsible finance and how Islamic finance can contribute to expanding its appeal to a wider audience. The Summit, organized by RFI Foundation and co-organized by Middle East Global Advisors, also represents a setting for ISRA to highlight its work in applied Shari'ah research on Islamic finance, particularly on ethical dimensions of Islamic finance.

A potential listing of Bank Muamalat Malaysia Bhd could be an option should its major shareholder DRB-Hicom Bhd fail to find a suitable suitor to buy up a stake in the bank. The requirement to pare down DRB-Hicom’s stake in Bank Mualamat is to comply with Bank Negara’s requirements from current 70% to 40%, which has been delayed for a few years. Last week, the proposed merger between Malaysia Building Society Bhd (MBSB) and Bank Muamalat was called off as the parties involved were not been able to reach an agreement on the terms and conditions. Disagreement over valuations and control were believed to be factors that led to the breakdown of negotiations that began last October.

Despite the emphasis on ethics, and the growth of the industry at a time when women are increasingly making their mark on the corporate world, the Islamic finance sector is incredibly male-dominated. In the Gulf region, where much of the sector is concentrated, there are no female Islamic scholars acting as advisors to financial institutions, a key position in the sector. While there are a few prominent women sitting on company boards and working as CEOs in Bahrain and Kuwait, they are notable exceptions. Clearly, this is in large part a result of cultural factors. But even in the UK, progress has been slow. However, there is one country where women are seizing plenty of top leadership roles: Malaysia.

Freed of international sanctions, Iran has asked India to reactivate its accounts with Indian banks and allow Iranian banks to open offices here. Keen to quickly normalise banking and commercial relations with the world, Tehran also wants UCO BankBSE -3.50 % to open a representative office in Iran. Tehran has already opened an account with IDBI Bank. Central Bank of Iran's vice governor Gholamali Kamyab has conveyed to Indian authorities that Bank Pasargad and Parsian Bank were keen to open representative offices in India while Saman Bank was interested in opening a subsidiary, they said. State Bank of India (SBI) has accounts of 11 Iranian banks including Central Bank of Iran (CBI).

International Finance Corporation (IFC) has agreed to invest $75 million in PT Bank Danamon Indonesia Tbk (BDMN), to develop the bank’s Islamic trade financing operations. Bank Danamon is majority owned by Temasek Holdings (Private) Limited through its affiliate Fullerton Financial Holdings Ltd (67.37%) with JPMB Franklin Templeton Investment Funds holding 6.81 per cent and 25.82 per cent with the public. IFC proposes to invest up to $75 million structured as an Islamic trade financing instrument. The total facility size would be approximately $150 million including co-investment by the Bank. With this investment, IFC is targeting deepening of Islamic financing in Indonesia through new financial products and services designed to expand outreach.

The Shari’ah Advisory Council (SAC) of the Central Bank of Malaysia discussed the issue of application of Tabarru` contract (voluntary gift) in Takaful, transfer of ownership of Hibah asset, breach of condition in Wakalah bi al-istithmar contract (agency contract for investment) and Wa`d (promise) which is attached to action, time or situation. The SAC has decided the following: 1) The underlying concept for Takaful scheme is Tabarru` and Ta`awun among the Takaful participants. 2) Tabarru` in Takaful is applied through contributions from the participants to the Tabarru` fund which is managed by Takaful operator. 3) Financial obligation (Zimmah maliyah) of Tabarru` fund is independent from the financial obligation of Takaful operator and individual Takaful participant.

When asked about the plans of the central bank on Al-Amanah Bank, Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) Governor Amando M. Tetangco, Jr. said they found it best to leave it to the Legislative to decide how the government will go about the planned sale, as well as on how the state will accommodate Islamic-based banking activities. BSP has led the drafting of a law amending AIIB charter and creating an Islamic banking system. The bill thereon which has been filed in the House of Representatives aims to create an expanded Islamic banking system and address constraints including the issues on taxation. Currently, Al-Amanah Bank is the first and only Islamic bank authorized to practice Islamic banking in the country.

Bank accounts frozen. Bankers quizzed. As offshore authorities seek to track money flows involving Malaysia's troubled government investment fund, fresh questions are rising about doing business in the country. Crisscrossing countries from Switzerland to the US, Middle East and Singapore, investigators are chasing a trail of transactions linked to 1Malaysia Development Bhd. With the probes potentially running for years, investors and analysts say it may damage the perception that Malaysia is trying to become a more transparent place. The risk is political, economic and commercial. Malaysia's global score worsened in Transparency International's Corruption Perceptions Index for 2015, putting it on a ranking near Slovakia and Cuba.

The Employees Provident Fund (EPF) plans to launch its first fully syariah-compliant fund by January 2017 with an initial fund size of up to RM120bil. Those who are interested in converting their savings to full shariah compliance status can do so on a first come first serve basis, EPF deputy chief executive officer of investments Datuk Mohamad Nasir Ab Latif said. The pension fund’s total investment assets grew to RM667.56bil as at September last year. Its total income for the first nine months of last year amounted to RM31.58bil. 51% of the EPF’s portfolio mix comprise of fixed income investments, while 43% is from equities. The remainder is for real estate and infrastructure as well as other investments.

Authorities in Singapore say they have seized a "large number" of bank accounts that various media have linked to a Malaysian government-run fund that stirred controversy around Prime Minister Najib Razak. While Singaporean authorities didn't confirm the link, the move comes days after Switzerland said it would submit evidence of illegal transactions to Malaysian authorities, asking them to help pursue the investigation. The developments come just before Najib and other Southeast Asian leaders hold a special summit with U.S. President Barack Obama in California this month. Obama is strengthening ties with the region to help counter China's growing assertiveness in the South China Sea and to tap the region's large and fast-growing economies.

Singapore has seized a “large number” of bank accounts over possible money laundering offences linked to an international investigation into the Malaysian state investment fund 1MDB, authorities in the city-state said on Monday. In an illustration of the mounting pressure from global regulators on the troubled fund, Singapore confirmed that it was “cooperating closely” with relevant authorities in Switzerland and the US. The Swiss attorney general announced on Friday that there were “serious indications” that $4bn had been misappropriated from Malaysian state companies and that a portion of the funds was transferred to accounts held in Switzerland.

The proposed merger of Malaysia Building Society Bhd (MBSB) and Bank Muamalat Malaysia Bhd, to create the country’s biggest standalone Islamic bank has fallen through. MBSB said on Tuesday that after a series of discussions and negotiations, the financial institution and the shareholders of Bank Muamalat -- DRB-Hicom Bhd and Khazanah Nasional Bhd – have not been able to reach an agreement on the terms and conditions of the proposed merger. Accordingly, the parties have mutually agreed to end all discussions and not proceed with the proposed merger. The deadline for the proposed merger between MBSB and Bank Muamalat was on Tuesday.

Chechen President Ramzan Kadyrov plans to open an Islamic bank, with help from the United Arab Emirates. Kadyrov is known for his conservative, heavy-handed response to dissent against his rule and that of Russian President Vladimir Putin, recently calling for the Russian opposition to be tried as “enemies of the state.” Kadyrov has repeatedly portrayed himself as a protector of moderate Islam in the primarily Muslim Chechnya. Now Kadyrov has revealed that he is setting up a new project to attract more investment from the Gulf. He said he had spoken with Abu Dhabi-based development company Mazcorp and it had agreed to help him “move towards the realization of the project.”

The Islamic banking system continues making its way to Russia, although not as quickly as its supporters would like, primarily Russian Muslims who number 21 million people, according to various estimates. The main problems relate to the need to change the Russian legislation. But the first steps in this direction are already being made. A draft of amendments to the Civil Code was submitted to the State Duma this week to help separate Islamic money flows from non-Islamic funds. The document prepared by Deputy Chairman of the State Duma Committee for the Financial Market Dmitry Savelyev stipulates opening special bank accounts to allow investing funds on these accounts into assets permitted by the Code of Muslim Laws.

The Swiss attorney general’s announcement that $4 billion may have been misappropriated from Malaysian state-owned companies opened a new front in the troubles facing 1Malaysia Development Bhd. Switzerland’s top prosecutor on Friday named a number of firms in Malaysia, Saudi Arabia and Abu Dhabi in relation to the matter, but gave no details of their roles, if any. The investigation is one of a series of global probes into 1MDB. A Malaysian government investigation last year found that almost $700 million entered Mr. Najib’s alleged bank accounts via agencies, companies and banks linked to 1MDB ahead of a close election in 2013.

Malaysia's government through Deputy Prime Minister Ahmad Zahid Hamidi issued a startling statement saying the Swiss attorney- general should not have made public his request for Malaysia's help into 1MDB probe. More specifically, it was related to the US$4 billion (RM16.6 billion) suspected misappropriations by 1MDB and possible violations of Swiss law. The government must be very nervous since Switzerland is no longer the safe secret haven for ill-gotten funds as its banking secrecy law is no longer what it used to be. Since the Swiss AG's report mentioned possible involvement of former Malaysian government officials, Putrajaya is getting plenty of sleepless nights.