IslamicFinance.de

For the second time, the Turkish Bank Asya will try to issue a debut dollar-denominated sukuk worth up to $300m. The issuance is planned for the first quarter of 2013. The sukuk is expected to bring up to TL150m ($57m) of lira denominated paper.

The findings of Thomson Reuters' and Zawya's Sukuk Perceptions and Forecast Study have been released. The study was conducted in November this year and focuses on a survey of sukuk lead arrangers and investors conducted in August and September 2012. The primary empirical data have been used as a base for forward-looking analytics on the appetites and preferences of sukuk investors for 2013 and beyond. The study states that global captive sukuk demand is likely to to double from $240 billion in 2012 to reach $421 billion by 2016.

Central Bank of Oman's (CBO) board of governors has made a revision of the legal framework of Oman's banking system. The goal of the revision is to implement Islamic banking activities in the sultanate. In a recent statement, the board made its decision to introduce amendments to the existing banking law concerning Islamic banking public. The issued last week Royal Decree made amendments to provisions of the banking law in order to allow for the inclusion of Islamic banking as a licensed banking activity. Specialized banks as well as independent windows at existing commercial banks can be used for this purpose.

The Islamic Corporation for the Development of the Private Sector gave start to a fund aiming to finance renewable- energy projects in Central Asia and plans another in Africa. The fund is worth $35 million and is situated in Kazakhstan. In the very near future the North Africa fund containing $35 million to $50 million is to be opened. Financing for renewables ventures is targeting emerging markets due to the governments' striving to curb reliance on fuel imports and cash-strapped nations in Europe cut subsidies for clean power.

Nakheel's bonds have brought their bondholders four times more returns than global peers this year. This year's return of the company's notes is 48%. Thus, the average gains of 11 per cent for the Bank of America Merrill Lynch Global Real Estate Index were surpassed by far. Compared to Nakheel, bonds of high-yielding American home builders registered an increase of 23%.

Global Islamic banking assets are expected to reach over $1.8 trillion in the coming year. This forecast by Ernst & Young is significantly higher than some industry estimates published earlier. The Islamic banking industry continuously grows worldwide and manages to sustain its quick pace. The top 20 Islamic banks demonstrate growth rates of 16% during the last three years. Saudi Arabia appears to be the largest market for Islamic assets.

According to HSBC Holdings, bond sales by Gulf government-related companies will experience growth at the beginning of next year. Thus, more than $1trn can be invested in different planned projects. Georges Elhedery, head of global markets for the Middle East and North Africa at HSBC, supports the opinion that the optimistic attitude is very reasonable.

HSBC will have to pay $1.9bn to US regulators after admitting its faults. The money-laundering probe of the bank focuses on the transfer of billions of dollars on behalf of nations under international sanctions such as Iran. Also, through the US financial system, money from from Mexican drug cartels was transferred. HSBC admitted its control was not strong enough and made an apology in a statement. The bank further announced that it had reached a deferred-prosecution agreement with the US Department of Justice.

Dana Gas PJSC completed restructuring its $920 million of Islamic bonds after reaching an agreement to pay twice the average yield on emerging markets corporate sukuk. Bondholders, some of which are BlackRock Inc (BLK) and Ashmore Group Plc (ASHM), will be paid $70 million in cash. The remaining Shariah- compliant debt will be split into convertible bonds and an ordinary sukuk of equal value worth $425 million. The profit rate of the five-year convertible bonds will be as high as 7% and the profit rate of ordinary sukuk 9 respectively.

According to a recent report by KFH-Research, one million wealthy families in the Gulf region are in possession of investment assets worth about USD 1.2 trillion. The report further informs that the world's population of high net worth individuals (HNWIs) grew by a marginal 0.8% year on year to 11 million in 2011. In comparison to growth rates of 17.1% in 2009 and 8.3% in 2010, last year's growth is considered rather sluggish. There is also a decline in the aggregate financial wealth of these HNWIs as high as 1.7% to USD 42 trillion in 2011. The main reason for this is believed to be the challenging global macroeconomic conditions and volatile global financial markets.

It is estimated that the total Islamic assets of the UAE are worth $75 billion. This sum puts the country on the third place regarding the global market for the Shariah-based banking industry. The worldwide assets in this area are expected to reach $1.8 trillion in 2013. The world's leader in Islamic assets is Saudi Arabia with an estimated total of $207 billion for 2011. The Islamic banking industry continues its rise as the top 20 Islamic banks grew 16% in the past three years.

The draft of the sukuk law aiming to regulate the trading of bonds in a manner compliant with Islamic law was finished by the Egyptian Financial Supervisory Authority (EFSA). In a statement, EFSA explained that the draft was created following a detailed study of international experiences in such regulations. Topics included in the draft are activities which can be financed by sukuk and the various kinds of financing instruments available. Before issuance, the bill stipulates the approval of a committee of three Islamic finance scholars on any sukuk offering.

In the context of the International Anti-Corruption Day, the Secretary-General of the United Nations - Ban Ki-moon - made a call for full global acceptance of an international convention. The purpose of it is to make corrupt practices around the world cease. Mr. Ban sees corruption as a non-inevitable issue. He further pointed out that universal adherence was particularly necessary.

In the area of today’s capital markets it is easy to talk and make statements about vision, mission, and strategy. Turning them into action, however, is a completely different thing. So, the question remains how to get economic talk into work done for the world’s leading economies, companies, academic institutions, governments, and regulatory authorities. "The power to convene" is considered to be a key capability leading towards executing plans and promises. It is illustrated with recent examples and analysis of this power's potential and ways to use it are discussed.

International Bank of Azerbaijan (IBA) considers to raise $150m using an Islamic syndicated loan at the beginning of 2013. Thus, the bank intends to double its Islamic banking assets by the end of next year. According to the bank's director of Islamic banking - Behnam Gurbanzada - signing a mandate in January and closing the deal in April is planned. The deal will be a one-year private syndication. It will contribute to IBA's intention to cater to the estimated 93% Muslims of its 9 million population.

Civil interest in Bahrain causes transactional business to be slow while litigation is flourishing. Therefore, the country's lawyers are determined to take up a key role in Bahrain's development. Different opinions have been expressed on who or what exactly is to blame for the currently slow business for lawyers.

Islamic interbank lending is changing its sympathies from Murabaha contracts to Wakala. This is considered to be a stronger Sharia-compliant process. The International Islamic Financial Market (IIFM) is working on the establishment of standardized agreements in the use of Wakala contracts. Since Murabaha have come under increasing criticism from Sharia scholars as compliant instruments, Wakala is pointed out as a suitable alternative.

Jordan Islamic Bank's Shari'a Quality Rating (SQR) was reaffirmed as AA by the Islamic International Rating Agency (IIRA). This is an indication that the bank conforms with very high standards of Shari'a compliance in regard of all aspects of Shari'a quality analysis. JIB, owned in majority by the Al Baraka Banking Group (ABG), is set to maintain and enhance the level of compliance with the spirit of Shari'a principles in Islamic finance.

HSBC claims that bond sales by government-related companies in the Persian Gulf will be able to pick up at the beginning of next year. Then, more than $1 trillion in planned spending will be supported. The reason for the optimism towards bond sales is that this year's issuance by government-related enterprises fell to about $9.9 billion. Compared to that, it was $13 billion last year and $8 billion in 2010.

It is expected that Islamic banks will expand further since they are currently competing more and more with conventional lenders in attracting mainstream customers. The Islamic assets of all commercial banks' in total are estimated to reach $1.55 trillion this year, $1.8 trillion in 2013 and over $2 trillion mark. Nearly 30% of the total - $450 billion in assets - are owned by Islamic banks in the Gulf region.