IslamicFinance.de

The Asian Development Bank (ADB) and the Islamic Financial Services Board (IFSB) have announced the launch of a joint ADB-IFSB publication called "Islamic Finance for Asia: Development, Prospects, and Inclusive Growth". The book was launched by ADB Vice President, Stephen Groff during an ADB-IFSB panel discussion on "How Islamic Finance Can Contribute to Sustainable Growth in Asia", which took place on 4 May 2015 in Baku, Azerbaijan, during the ADB Annual Meeting 2015. The publication is a resource for better understanding the Islamic financial services industry in Asia, and a reference for jurisdictions in other regions that aim to understand, introduce and develop Islamic finance.

Four weaknesses in the financial system explain Indonesia’s capitulation to the crisis in 1998: the undercapitalisation of the banking system, a substandard regulation and supervision, the lack of inter-bank competition and the availability of cheap credit from state-owned banks with low risk which provided no incentive for the corporate sector to raise funds in the capital and bond markets. Between 1997 and 2013, the Indonesian government adopted a number of policies to rebuild and modernise Indonesia’s financial sector. It is through these policies that the Indonesian government has effectively reduced risks and moved the Indonesia financial sector from a state of collapse towards a modern financial system.

Johor Corp (JCorp), a Malaysian state-owned firm, plans to list an Islamic real estate investment trust (Reit) holding MR900m ($253.22m) in assets by the third quarter of this year.

"Islamic Finance for Constructive Global Trade and Investment" is the main theme of the VII International economic summit of Russia and member countries of the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) – KazanSummit 2015, which will be held on June 15-16th in the third capital city of Russia – Kazan. The observer status of OIC that the Russian Federation received in 2005 provides the base for the improving interrelations between Russia and OIC member countries. Hence KazanSummit is the main platform for developing relations between Russian regions and OIC member countries that takes an economic cooperation to the international scene.

Bill Gross, well known fixed income fund manager twittered (https://twitter.com/januscapital/status/590519759797530624) and moved markets with his idea to sell German sovereign bonds short (selling without having them) to buy them back later cheaper. He called it "The Short of a lifetime"; the only issue would be the "timing"...

Interest rates will be once raising again but will short seller stay solvent long enough to benefit? The German economy is doing fine, but other EURO zone countries do not perform as well and need low interest rates for a prolonged period of time. Japan has so far not convincingly ended their easy money policy.

Khazanah Nasional is set to issue Malaysia's first social-impact sukuk. Local agency Ram Ratings said the RM1 billion (US$282 million) Sukuk Ihsan programme, to which it assigned a AAA rating last week, was the first social-impact bond to be rated globally. Proceeds will go towards educational projects. Investors and market observers are eagerly expecting the first issuance off the programme as early as next month, although marketing preparations are still being finalised. Socially responsible investment is catching on slowly in Asia, but issuers in South Korea, India and Taiwan have sold so-called Green bonds and interest from investors is growing.

A startup that recently relocated from San Francisco to Jakarta aims to shake up micro-finance in Indonesia. Blossom‘s concept can be said to be breaking ground: it operates on Bitcoin and targets the global Muslim community. Blossom collects money from investors around the globe. Blossom does not hand down the funds to business owners directly, but via an experienced microfinance institution on the ground. After a 12-month investment cycle, Blossom collects profits from the microfinance institutions and distributes them back to the investors. Blossom expects returns in the range of 7.5 to 12.5 percent, and itself takes a 20 percent cut on the returns. All of its money transfers are based on Bitcoin.

The BNP Paribas - INCEIF Centre for Islamic Wealth Management (CIWM) and Labuan International Business and Financial Centre (Labuan IBFC) held their 2nd annual Islamic Wealth Management Symposium on 28 April 2015 in Kuala Lumpur, aimed at raising national awareness of Islamic wealth management, particularly Islamic trusts and foundations. The Symposium also marked the public unveiling of Labuan IBFC's international waqf foundation, the first Islamic foundation designed with the international market in mind. The Symposium attracted more than 150 delegates. A total of 12 speakers and panelists ranging from regulators, Islamic scholars, academics and industry practitioners, convened to discuss Islamic wealth management.

The number of family offices in Asia and the Middle East will more than double to about 400 over the next eight years as the ranks of wealthy individuals swell, Michael Prahl of Insead business school said. Driven by the region's economic expansion, the number of wealthy individuals is expected to rise 40 percent by 2023. Family offices manage assets as well as provide tax, legal, accounting and philanthropy services to the wealthy. In the average Asian family office, just three investment professionals manage about US$400 million of assets, according to Insead. That compares with five to six professionals managing between US$300 million and US$1 billion in Europe or the US.

Russia is looking to Malaysia to assist and build its knowledge and human capital in Islamic Finance, as it looks to introduce the system for its Muslim citizens. A delegation from Malaysia, consisting of representatives of a subdivision of the Central Bank of Malaysia for development of Islamic finance and University Tun Adbul Razak, visited Russia in February to assess the market. Earlier this year, two major Islamic banking institutions, Al Baraka and Al Shamal, announced that they are actively looking for partners in the Russian market at a recent banking summit. Working with a local partner will allow them to operate legally in Russia.

Lloyd's is in talks with market regulators in Malaysia to set up an office dedicated to takaful. The planned office will also enable Lloyd's to target Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates, which together with Malaysia are the largest global markets for Islamic insurance, the marketplace's director of global markets, Vincent Vandendael, said. Lloyd's opened an office in the Dubai International Finance Centre (DIFC) earlier this year. Lloyd's has historically provided cross-border reinsurance in Malaysia as a foreign reinsurer, but also has a 'tier 2' licence allowing its syndicates to set up service companies in the Labuan International Business and Financial Centre (IBFC).

With the easing of economic sanctions against Iran, the country is expected to unleash its enormous potential of Islamic finance and enter the global stage with new Shariah-compliant products at a size that could threaten the dominance of Malaysia and Saudi Arabia in the sector. Iranian banks represent the world’s largest financial system based on Shariah law. However, due to the sanctions, the country has so far only marginally participated in the global Islamic finance sector and thus did not benefit from the rapid global growth of Islamic finance in the recent past. The entire banking system in Iran is Shariah-compliant, and there are no conventional banks to compete with.

Moody's Investors Service has assigned definitive A3 senior unsecured ratings to the US dollar trust certificates issued by Malaysia Sovereign Sukuk Bhd, a special purpose vehicle established by the government. Moody's said on Wednesday its definitive ratings for these debt obligations confirmed the provisional ratings assigned on April 6. The A3 rating assigned to the sukuk is at the same level as the long-term local-currency and foreign-currency issuer ratings of the Government of Malaysia. The proceeds of the sukuk will be used by the issuer to invest in the purchase of an asset pool consisting of Ijara assets, the right to participate in the provision of transportation services in Malaysia, and Shariah-compliant commodities.

Malaysia's Bank Islam issued its first sukuk tranche worth 300 million ringgit ($83.13 million) under its 1 billion ringgit sukuk murabahah programme, BIMB Holdings Bhd said on Wednesday. The tranche has a 10-year tenure and could only be redeemed after 5 years. Proceeds will be used to finance its banking activities and working capital, all of which would be sharia compliant.

Maybank Islamic Bhd expects the bulk of its mudarabah deposit account holders to reclassify their accounts to mudarabah investment account (IA), in compliance with Bank Negara’s requirement. Chief executive officer Muzaffar Hisham said the 350,000 customers of the bank’s existing mudarabah deposit products had been given until May 31 to consent to either have their accounts reclassified as IA or other syariah-compliant deposit products. Some 70%-80% of the bank’s customers were expected to make the switch as the IA was a compliance requirement arising from the central bank’s Islamic Financial Services Act 2013.

Malaysia's $160 billion state pension fund will offer an Islamic investment option to its members by 2017 which would create the world's largest sharia-compliant fund of its kind, Prime Minister Najib Razak said. The move could funnel billions of dollars into sharia-compliant asset managers in Malaysia in a boon for the country's Islamic finance sector. Najib did not specify how big he thought the sharia-compliant standalone fund could be. The Employees Provident Fund (EPF) already invests about a third of its portfolio in stocks and bonds that comply with Islamic principles. Najib said the Securities Commission is also developing a blueprint for the country's Islamic fund and wealth management industry to help chart its strategic direction.

Maybank Investment Bank, Public Islamic Bank and RHB Islamic Bank have entered into an agreement with Impian Bebas Sdn Bhd to provide a 15-year, RM1.08 billion syndicated Islamic term financing. Maybank IB was appointed as the coordinating bank and joint lead arranger (JLA) for the Islamic term financing together with Public Islamic and RHB Islamic. Impian Bebas, a joint venture company between KLCC (Holdings) Sdn Bhd and Sapura Resources Bhd, is developing a commercial land known as Lot 91 at Kuala Lumpur City Centre (KLCC) into a mixed commercial development comprising of office tower, convention centre and retail podium.

Three Malaysian banks are to provide property company Impian Bebas Sdn Bhd with a 15-year 1.08 billion ringgit ($298.34 million) syndicated Islamic financing, Maybank Investment Bank Bhd, one of the banks involved, said. Impian Bebas was created from a partnership between property and investmemt groups KLCC Holdings Sdn Bhd and Sapura Resources Berhad. It is to develop a plot of land in central Kuala Lumpur, close to the city's Petronas twin towers. Maybank IB was appointed as the joint lead arranger with Public Islamic Bank Bhd and RHB Islamic Bank Bhd , Maybank said in a statement.

A rally in Malaysia’s two-year Islamic bonds lost its key driver after central bank Governor Zeti Akthar Aziz seemed to rule out an interest-rate cut. Malaysia’s borrowing costs are accommodative and the ringgit is undervalued, Zeti said. Maybank Investment Bank said there’s limited room for further declines in short-end yields, after they fell five times faster than those on 10-year notes in 2015. Franklin Templeton Investments Malaysia sees investors switching to longer tenors and forecasts no policy change this year. In the absence of any events that may lead to GDP falling below Bank Negara’s target, a cut in the overnight policy rate is considered unnecessary at this juncture.

Sabana Shariah Compliant REIT (SGX: M1GU) had released its fiscal first-quarter earnings yesterday evening. The real estate investment trust is sponsored by the small conglomerate Vibrant Group Ltd (SGX: F01). Currently, Sabana REIT owns a portfolio of 23 properties in Singapore, with assets worth a collective S$1.3 billion. Sabana REIT had achieved revenue of S$25.4 million in its fiscal first-quarter (three months ended 31 March 2015), a slight 3.2% year-on-year increase. However, its net property income only managed to grow by 1.1% from a year ago to S$18.6 million as a result of much higher property expenses. Besides, Sabana REIT’s net asset value per unit has decreased slightly to S$1.06 as at 31 March 2015 from S$1.09 a year ago.