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QInvest LLC, which is forming a joint venture with Egyptian EFG-Hermes Holding SAE, issaid to be cutting jobs at its brokerage and asset management divisions. 13 people will have to leave. The reductions, however, have not been made public yet. In the joint venture, QInvest LLC plans to take 60% of the new entity while EFG-Hermes Holding SAE receives the remaining 40%.

Read more on: http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2012-10-10/qinvest-said-to-cut-jobs-at-bro...

Asa reflection of healthy demand for the sukuk deal, Qatar International Islamic Bank (QIIB) launched a US$700m Islamic bond on Thursday. The price of the issue lies at the lower end of the one revised. The spread of the five-year sukuk is 190 basis points over midswaps. The mandated arrangers on the deal are HSBC, Standard Chartered and QNB Capital.

Read more on: http://www.arabianbusiness.com/qatar-s-qiib-price-700m-sukuk-thursday-47...

A new $50 million fund - the Central Asia Renewable Energy Fund - was launched by the Islamic Corporation for Development of Private Sector (ICD). According to the CEO of the corporation, Mr. Khaled Al-Aboodi, the money will be used to benefit countries of the Caucasus and Central Asia Regions, most important of which will be Kazakhstan, Azerbaijan and Turkey. Further target countries of the fund include Kyrgyzstan, Turkmenistan, Tajikistan, Uzbekistan, Bosnia, Albania and Kosovo. Factors like growing environmental awareness, evidence of climate change, scarcity of fossil fuels, and an increasing commitment by governments to support new sources of energy lead to growing interest in renewable energy in these countries.

Read more on: http://www.abc.az/eng/news_12_10_2012_68763.html

An issuance of a full-fledged Islamic Banking Regulatory Framework (IBRF) by the Central Bank of Oman (CBO) is expected in the very near future. Therefore, Oman is ready to dive into Islamic finance. By the end of 2015 a growth in Islamic finance assets of 20% of the total banking and insurance assets in the Sultanate is expected. Investment in research and innovation is encouraged in order to meet the needs of the increasing market appetite.

According to Arqaam Capital Ltd, EFG-Hermes Holding SAE plans to sell its 40% stake in 2013 in the investment bank it is forming with QInvest. Thus, it will turn into a holding company. EFG-Hermes' assets will be held in Lebanese unit Credit Libanais SAL and in a private equity unit managing $980 million (Dh3.6 billion).

Read more on: http://gulfnews.com/business/markets/efg-to-sell-qinvest-joint-venture-s...

A consultation paper released this week announces a proposal by Qatar's regulator for extending its ban on onshore banks operating Islamic windows in order to make financial institutions part of the Qatar Financial Centre (QFC). Islamic windows enable conventional banks to offer Islamic financial services. The only prerequisite is that clients' money is segregated from the rest of the bank. An extension of the ban is expected to prevent conventional banks from taking advantage of the QFC.

Read more on: http://www.reuters.com/article/2012/10/11/islamic-finance-qatar-idUSL6E8...

Axiata launched a multi-currency sukuk programme followed closely by a dim sum sukuk issue. This is seen as a new level of flexibility for underlying assets in an individual deal. In September, an issue of RMB 1 billion ($158.7 million) was launched which is so far the largest RMB-denominated dim sum sukuk. For the programme itself $1.5 million were designated.

Read more on: http://www.iflr.com/Article/3101307/Capital-markets/Axiata-sukuk-signals...

Bank Burj's results for the first half of 2012 (until June 30th) are out. The bank registeres a profit before tax as high as Rs147 million. The results are a reflection of a turnaround of Burj Bank which caused continuous earning for the first two quarters of the year. The growth of the bank's total deposits lies at 57% reaching Rs 32b for the period. In spite of political and economical problems, the bank demonstrated excellent half yearly performance.

Read more on: http://www.nation.com.pk/pakistan-news-newspaper-daily-english-online/bu...

According to a senior bank official, Barclays Bank Egypt SAE discusses involving in the Egyptian Islamic banking market and to increase loans to small and medium businesses. Thus, the bank intends to implement new ways to generate revenue. Replication of its South African Islamic products in Egypt is one of the main topics considered. Since SMEs provide 70% of the country's economic growth, Barclays Bank have been examining in detail lending to SMEs for the last two years.

Read more on: http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2012-10-10/barclays-weighs-islamic-finance...

The International Islamic Trade Finance Corporation, which is affiliated with the Islamic Development Bank, is giving Egypt a loan worth US$1.2 billion in total. The loan aims to provide basic and strategic commodities. The second part of this loan, US$330 million, is being prepared by several local and regional banks. It is intended to be used for importing wheat and food commodities.

Read more on: http://www.egyptindependent.com/news/islamic-development-bank-lend-egypt...

After a long time of secular rule, the Tunisian government intends to develop Islamic banking. However, there are discussions on whether the leading motive is economic or rather political. Some people see that the initiative as an effort to win the support of voters. On one hand, change of policy is possible to bring economic benefits because the country would have more access to a huge pool of Islamic investment funds from the Gulf. On the other hand, there are some political complications in Tunisia.

Bahrain investment firm Arcapita Bank has time until Dec. 14 to submit a reorganization plan without the threat of rival proposals. The company shall not seek any further extensions after that date. The extension was approved by judge Sean H. Lane of U.S. Bankruptcy Court in Manhattan. The decision was made possible by the satisfaction of an objection from Arcapita's official committee of unsecured creditors. Arcapita considers a standalone plan as well as a plan involving new money from a third party.

Read more on: http://www.nasdaq.com/article/arcapita-to-file-chapter-11-plan-by-dec-14...

A partnership deal between Australian Islamic wealth manager Crescent Wealth and Bank of London and The Middle East (BLME) was signed. The deal enables Australian retail investors to participate in the Islamic bonds market. The global market for Sukuk is estimated at $150bn. The partnership with BLME marks Australia as a viable growth market for Islamic funds management.

Read more on: http://www.investmenteurope.net/investment-europe/news/2215997/crescent-...

Australian investors are expected to involve in one of the most rapidly growing asset classes soon. A new tie-up between Australia's Islamic fund manager and Europe's largest Islamic bank is on the way. According to plan, the Crescent Islamic Cash Management Fund will allocate up to half of its assets to investment-grade sukuk at the beginning of 20113.

Read more on: http://www.theaustralian.com.au/business/wall-street-journal/manager-to-...

The sales of Persioan Gulf Sukuk are notably higher than Shariah-compliant loans in the Middle East, Europe and Africa. This has not happened since 2006. The reason pointed out is that borrowers seize on tumbling yields to finance roads and airports. The sukuk sales in the GCC are almost four times larger this year, to a large extent due to the sales of Saudi Arabian state-run Civil Aviation Authority and of the Qatari government. Compared to that, Shariah-compliant loans show a growth of only 57%.

Read more on: http://www.businessweek.com/news/2012-10-10/gulf-sukuk-beat-loans-for-fi...

The Global Islamic Microfinance Forum 2012 will take place from 8th to 10th of December 2012 in Dubai. Major theme of the event is “Islamic Microfinance – A Hope for Poor”. On the 9th and 10th of December there will be an optional workshop titled “Shariah and Marketing Techniques in Microfinance”. Participants will be taught about the Islamic microfinance model. The goal is to encourage its practice on a national as well as international level, including in non-Islamic businesses. The organizer of the event is AlHuda Center of Islamic Banking and Economic (CIBE), a nonprofit consulting firm from Pakistan.

Read more on: http://www.microcapital.org/microfinance-event-alhuda-center-akhuwat-org...

The paper by Tanaya Kilara and Alexia Latortue addresses the topic of familiarizing poor individuals with savings programs. This is particularly important at early ages. Financial providers can offer tailored savings suitable even for young people from low-income families. Potential opportunities and obstacles which financial providers encounter are examined closely.

Read more on: http://www.microcapital.org/microfinance-paper-wrap-up-emerging-perspect...

Even though people in developed and developing countries live complex financial lives, by far not all of them have bank accounts as money management hubs. Popular means of money management among poor people are keeping savings at home, joining savings clubs, transacting with family/friends, signing on with formal licensed providers etc. In contrast, people in developed countries rely on bank accounts. Since opening a bank account for a poor person will hardly change his/her financial life, a more complex transition and a better measure of financial inclusion is necessary.

Read more on: http://cfi-blog.org/2012/10/09/whats-wrong-with-banking-the-unbanked/

SMEs move from their entrepreneurial phase to a professionally-managed phase. As a result, there is a huge necessity for them to adopt the concept of corporate governance. According to a report by Capita Group International (CGI), Gulf SMEs are not particularly efficient. There is a huge difference between their share of employment and their share of gross domestic product (GDP) to GDP's disadvantage. National Commercial Bank (NCB) shows in a report that the majority of GCC businesses, especially SMEs, demonstrate low efficiency, low growth, little innovation and weak management.

Read more on: http://gulfnews.com/opinions/columnists/challenge-of-entrepreneurship-in...

Sabah’s state banks have been positively assessed which results in rising confidence about the potential of its financial services sector and Islamic finance in particular. The “AA1” and “P1” issue ratings of the corporation have been reaffirmed by RAM Ratings in July. A month prior to that, Sabah Development Bank (SDB) received long- and short-term issue ratings of “AA1” and “P1”. All in all, a stable outlook and a leading strategic role of the Corporation are pointed out.

Read more on: http://www.oxfordbusinessgroup.com/economic_updates/sabah-islamic-bankin...