IslamicFinance.de

Leading Islamic finance scholars are preparing the first global certification for Shariah experts, seeking to bolster the industry’s reputation and make it easier for banks to find qualified advisers. The International Shariah Research Academy for Islamic Finance in Kuala Lumpur will pick a board of regulators by year- end to issue permits for scholars qualified to sit on Shariah boards. The scholars decide whether financial products meet the religion’s precepts, including a ban on interest payments. Scholars are now required to have recognized university degrees before they can act as advisers to banks and companies. The council of scholars at the academy includes Sheikh Nizam Yaquby of Bahrain, Mohammad Daud Bakar of Malaysia and Abdul Sattar Abu Ghuddah of Syria. A centralized regulator for scholars will help increase investment because banks would save time in choosing experts to ensure products meet religious principles. The institution doesn’t plan to restrict scholars on the number of advisory panels they can join.

The Jeddah-based Islamic Development Bank (IDB) is gearing up for its latest sukuk offering under its Medium Term Note (MTN) or Trust Certificate Issuance Program. The IDB, according to Mohamed Tariq, senior adviser to the President Ahmad Mohamed Ali, was poised to go to the international financial markets in September this year. In Kuala Lumpur last week, Abdul Aziz Al-Hinai, vice president, finance, IDB, confirmed that the IDB plans to go to the market in the last quarter of 2010. Another international rating agency, Moody's Investors Service, last month had already reaffirmed for a fifth consecutive year the Islamic Development Bank's Aaa long term and P-1 short term foreign currency issuer rating with a stable outlook. Moody's stated that the IDB's rating is strongly supported by the commitment of its member countries, and highlighted that the capital base of the bank is strong, its operational assets continue to perform well, it has a high level of liquidity and very low level of debt. Moody's concluded that the bank's risk profile is likely to remain healthy over the medium term.

Bank Negara Malaysia will host the Second Global Islamic Finance Forum (GIFF 2010) from Oct 25 to 28 with the theme "Islamic Finance: Opportunities for Tomorrow".