IslamicFinance.de

After a ranking of the top 50 banks in the Middle East by assets for the period H1 2011 it became clear that Saudi banks are leaders in profitability. Throughout the period they have been maintaining strong asset quality and adapting adequate lending practices and underwriting standards. As the main reason for the success of Saudi banks the traditional conservative fiscal polices together with the billion-dollar government budget are pointed out.

More on: http://www.saudigazette.com.sa/index.cfm?method=home.regcon&contentid=20...

The Waqf Fund, which purpose is to support Islamic finance training, education and research, has expanded its scope of activity and started supporting the industry in various ways during the last year. According to a statement by Khalid Hamad, fund chairman and Central Bank of Bahrain executive director of banking supervision, the fund is supporting Bahrain University in their Bachelor of Arts in Sharia for banking and finance as well as Shaikh Isa Library.

More on: http://www.gulf-daily-news.com/NewsDetails.aspx?storyid=338524

KFH conducted a study which states thath the global sukuk market has experiences a significant boost during the last six years. The growth of sukuk is as high as 28.3% which makes the total value of sukuk issuance worldwide during the first half of the current year USD 210.8 billion. It is expected that next year, 2013, will bring further rise in profit and expansion.

More on: http://www.kuna.net.kw/ArticleDetails.aspx?id=2263268&Language=en

The central bank of Bahrain has given its confirmation to the merge of Capivest, Elaf Bank and Capital Management House (CMH). The three Islamic lenders will merge into a $400m asset base and $350m shareholder equity entity will get underway before the end of 2012. Ratification of the decision of the three banks by the apex lender and the industry and commerce ministry is expected in June.

More on: http://www.ameinfo.com/bahraini-islamic-banks-merger-2012-end-313053

Wealth fund Mumtalakat, Bahrain, has priced a 300 million ringgit ($97.7m) five-year sukuk on September 7. Standard Chartered and CIMB Islamic helped pricing the Islamic bond. The murabaha-structured deal has been issued as part of the company's three billion ringgit sukuk programme. The issuance itself is due October 4.

More on: http://www.ameinfo.com/mumtalakat-issue-977m-islamic-bond-313070

In an announcement on Wednesday, Bank of London and The Middle East plc (BLME) informed about a significant senior secured transaction with Greenergy Biofuels Limited. BLME is the lead arranger and the main shareholders with equal stakes are BLME and a bank basedin Qatar. The facility is secured against the assets of a biodiesel plant located in Immingham, Humberside, UK.

More on: http://www.zawya.com/story/BLME_arranges_senior_secured_Murabaha_finance...

Since Ridge Islamic Capital wants to be able to offer a full range of sharia-compliant financial services in Egypt, it is looking for a local brokerage to buy. Such an initiative would be a part of its expansion plan. The company's intentions are to start providing sharia-compliant brokerage services during the last three months of 2012. The brokerage they are looking for should have a solid reputation and a track record. Potential candidates and deal size have not been made known so far.

More on: http://in.reuters.com/article/2012/09/26/egypt-islamic-brokerage-idINL5E...

Since Malaysian home takaful market is bound to tight rules, Islamic insurers direct their expansion towards neighbouring Indonesia aiming to tap three times faster growth. Great Eastern Takaful Sdn Bhd already has a facility in Jakarta and now intends to address low-income people in the region. Etiqa Takaful Bhd also plans expansion in Indonesia - it focuses on buying an Indonesian Islamic insurer.

More on: http://www.btimes.com.my/Current_News/BTIMES/articles/20120927105638/Art...

According to an announcement by Al Baraka Islamic Bank, Abdul Rahman Abdullah Mohammed has joined the bank's board. This was made possible by Central Bank of Bahrain's approval. Abdul Rahman Abdullah Mohammed is an expert in banking business with over 36 years experience in numerous institutions including NBB banking group where he was general manager until recently.

More on: http://www.gulf-daily-news.com/NewsDetails.aspx?storyid=338525

Turkish Bank Asya considers a sukuk issuance worth up to 150 million lira ($83 million) by the end of the current year. The money gained from the sukuk is to be used for finance investments.

More on: http://in.reuters.com/article/2012/09/25/bankasya-sukuk-idINL5E8KP5EE201...

Standard & Poor’s has rated Turkey's debut $1.5bn Sukuk lease certificates that fall due in 2018 'BB'. The issuance of the Ijarah certificates will be conducted by Hazine Mustesarligi Varlik Kiralama Anonim Sirketi. The assets underlying the lease consist of buildings and land owned by the country. The transaction further allows the state to sells a pool of property assets to the issuer.

More on: http://www.theislamicglobe.com/index.php?option=com_content&view=article...

In order to exit bankruptcy, Arcapita has designed a long-term business plan which is to be combined with a previously approved incentive plan with employees. According to the latter plan, terminated employees and such, who remained with the company through November, will have the opportunity to settle the amounts they owed Arcapita from an incentive plan that allowed them to co-invest with Arcapita in portfolio companies. The incentive was made possible by an affiliate of Arcapita which loans the company money in order for Arcapita to invest in its deals.

More on: http://www.theislamicglobe.com/index.php?option=com_content&view=article...

It is a common opinion that Africa offers excellent opportunities for the global development and expansion of Islamic finance. The bank's managing director, Alhaji Mohammed Mustapha Bintube, explained that the bank has made steady progress regarding number of accounts opened, number of deposits, and numbers of proposals that received on a daily basis. The bank offers various products in the field of retail such as Jaiz Home Finance, Jaiz Auto Finance, Jaiz Home Appliance Finance etc. After the approval of the shareholders, the bank plans to increase its capital base from N7bn to N12bn.

More on: http://www.theislamicglobe.com/index.php?option=com_content&view=article...

A new guide to responsible investing in 10 major commodities sectors has been introduced by the Worldwide Wildlife Fund (WWF). The guide was launched at the Global AgInvesting Asia conference, where hundreds of allocators, fund managers, and industry executives gathered to discuss the burgeoning asset class of agriculture and other related topics. As a field guide, The 2050 Criteria adresses mainstream investors such as banks, investors, and financial analysts. Its goal is to help them mitigate the primary sources of environmental and social risk for investors in these sectors.

More on: http://www.bikyamasr.com/78403/wwf-delivers-guidelines-for-responsible-c...

GFH Capital discusses the takeover of the English football club Leeds United and has considerably advanced in its negotiations. Even though a football club is not typical for a bank's business, GFH Capital has discussed logistic and other issues at length and it is possible for the investment operation to be finalized by the end of the year.

More on: http://www.ameinfo.com/gfh-capital-talks-takeover-leeds-united-312875

The principles of Shariah are a key factor in family enterprises in the Gulf region. Since enterprise and trade go hand in hand to contribute to the development of a progressive, prosperous ummah as well as to create wealth and provide exchange opportunities, Shariah has its way to support it. Thus, employment and economic growth are stimulated. This is why Shariah does not accept the concept of hoarding and, instead, places an obligation upon Muslims to spend in the way of society through acts of charity, entrepreneurship and investment.

More on: http://www.mondaq.com/x/197730/Economic+Analysis/Growth+Of+Family+Enterp...

Standard and Poor’s is concerned about profitability in long term of Gulf takaful providers because they consider the investment strategies highly risky. On the other hand, according to forecasts, takaful contributions in the GCC region will grow much larger than premiums in the local conventional insurance industry in the following 12-18 months. Still, Standard and Poor's claims that it is not known for sure how many of the companies involved will maintain their long-term profitability.

More on: http://www.gulf-times.com/site/topics/article.asp?cu_no=2&item_no=533485...

The move to stipulate a minimum RO10 million capital for takaful firms aroused serious concern among Oman insurance companies. Reason therefore is that such a move will most probably pose a major entry barrier for local companies. That is why insurance companies prefer window operations in takaful business like the proposed regulation in banking sector. The proposal by Capital Market Authority (CMA) concerns a minimum envisaged capital of RO10 million and a three-member board for standalone companies for Sharia-compliant takaful insurance business. Feedback from insurance companies is expected within two week's tima.

More on: http://www.zawya.com/story/Oman_Insurers_upset_over_norms_for_takaful_fi...

Ridge Islamic Capital announced it had $100 million which will be used to raise the company's capital and invest in funds over the next two years. Thus, it aims to tap a growing market for Islamic finance. The launch of Ridge Islamic Capital took place after Ridge Solutions International Holdings acquired El Rashad.

More on: http://english.ahram.org.eg/NewsContent/3/12/53336/Business/Economy/Egyp...

Boeing Capital Corporation pointed out that strategical investment into new aircraft is necessary. Also, the growth of Islamic financing’s position in commercial airplane deliveries shows its results. Due to their mobile nature and asset attractiveness, airplanes are considered ideal for lending under Shariah law. During the last two years, numerous financial institutions and airlines in the Middle East havelargly increased their investments in new Boeing commercial airplanes. Thus, they were able to realize substantial rewards for their investors because of the growing demand.

More on: http://www.traveldailymedia.com/138359/aircraft-investment-islamic-finan...