IslamicFinance.de

Indonesia is facing tough economic challenges and a period of political uncertainty. In this climate, Indonesia needs to restore foreign investors’ trust and redirect their attention to its strong fundamentals: a politically stable country with the world’s fourth largest population and a young and growing consumer base. One fundamental step to restoring this trust and raising Indonesia’s standing as an attractive investment destination is to shore up the private sector’s corporate governance practices. Indonesian companies can build trust by protecting the rights of shareholders and honoring their obligations to staff, investors, suppliers and local communities. They should also institute a competent and independent board that can review management decisions.

JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped Al- Rajhi Bank, the world’s largest Shariah-compliant lender, as a correspondent banking client amid a push to improve risk controls. The relationship with the bank ended Dec. 31 because JPMorgan couldn’t get enough information on where payments in dollar-clearing services for Al-Rajhi had originated. JPMorgan said it cut off the service to about 500 foreign lenders last year as regulators press the world’s biggest banks to verify that transactions are used for legitimate business. The crackdown seeks to halt funds tied to money laundering, terrorism and countries covered by economic sanctions. The two banks haven’t been cited by U.S. regulators for involvement in illegal money transfers.

Bahrain-based Gulf Finance House has announced its fourth-quarter net profit has more than doubled due to revenue derived from investments. The investment firm made a net profit of $5.2 million in the three months to Dec. 31, up from $2.5 million in the prior-year period. However, for the 2013 full year, GFH's net profit fell 37.2 percent to $6.3 million. This decline came despite a 20 percent reduction in operating costs, as the firm continued to aggressively cut expenses in the wake of a number of debt restructurings in recent years. GFH, through its Dubai-based subsidiary GFH Capital, agreed to sell 75 percent of Leeds United to Italian Massimo Cellino earlier this month.

The former Governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria Mallam Sanusi Lamido Sanusi claimed that 20 billion US dollars had gone missing from the coffers of the NNPC. Two weeks later, he was been suspended and relieved of his duties. As a next step, he will probably be subjected to a formal probe and the EFCC will be called in to investigate his tenure of office. Femi Fani Kayode commends his immense courage for speaking out and exposing the monuemental corruption in the government that he once served and that has now decided that they no longer require his services. Kayode is convinced that if you speak truth to power and you take on the system, the system will fight back and they will attempt to destroy you and all that is yours. Yet at the end of the day, the only road that is worth taking is the road of righteousness and truth, and it is the only one that leads to lasting honour and glory.

Nigeria's central bank governor Lamido Sanusi has been suspended by the president for "financial recklessness and misconduct". Mr Sanusi caused shockwaves in Nigeria when he alleged that $20bn (£12bn) in oil revenue had gone missing. He said he would challenge his suspension in order to preserve the central bank's independence. Meanwhile, foreign exchange, bond and money markets have stopped trading because of uncertainty caused by the move. The president, however, does not have the power to sack the central bank governor - only the National Assembly can do this. Although his term in office was due to end in June, the decision to suspend him now is still highly significant. Many Nigerians will think the president has chosen to suspend the whistleblower rather than focus on stopping fraud.

The President of the Islamic Development Bank (IDB), Dr Ahmad Mohamed Ali, and the UK Senior Minister of State for the Foreign & Commonwealth Office, Baroness Warsi of Dewsbury, view positively the fast growth of Islamic finance in the UK. During a visit to the IDB headquarters in Jeddah, Baroness Warsi told the IDB President that significant progress has been achieved by the UK Government in terms of Islamic finance. The UK is close to issuing its first sovereign sukuk which will possibly be issued by mid-2014, she said. Dr Ali and the Minister reiterated their commitment to the growing IDB-UK partnership in the area of development assistance and the economic empowerment of women. They also agreed to explore potential partnership opportunities in the development of Awqaf.

The RCMP's GTA Financial Crime Unit in collaboration with the Ontario Region Special Investigation Unit of the Office of the Superintendent of Bankruptcy (OSB), have charged two Toronto area men with offences under the Bankruptcy and Insolvency Act (BIA) and the Criminal Code (CC). Omar Farooq KALAIR, age 38, of Toronto and Yusuf PANCHBHAYA, age 55, of Mississauga have been charged individually and jointly with several offences, like fraud and theft among others. The charges are in relation to events surrounding the November 2011 bankruptcies of UM CAPITAL INC. and UM FINANCIAL INC. of Toronto. The allegations relate to the misappropriation of approximately $ 4.3 million in mortgage payments, the purchase & disappearance of 32kgs of gold bars, and the abuse of the bankruptcy process.

Organised in conjunction with the Harvard Islamic Finance Project, Farmida Bi talks on Islamic finance in the Western world. Farmida Bi is partner and European head of Islamic Finance, Norton Rose Fulbright LLP. Dr Paul Mills is senior economist at International Monetary Finance, London.

Recorded on 12 February 2014 in New Theatre, East Building.

An independent legal entity should oversee the way in which Islamic financial institutions certify they are following sharia principles, Kuwait’s central bank governor Mohammad Al-Hashel said. Currently, boards of sharia scholars at financial institutions rule on whether activities and products follow religious principles. They are also involved in audits that determine whether the institutions are operating in a compliant manner. At the same time, the scholars are on the payroll of the Islamic banks which they vet, an arrangement contrary to good governance. The growing role of Islamic finance in some national economies is now prompting government watchdogs to pay more attention to the sector. The creation of an independent legal body could see scholars independently reviewing the work of their peers. Establishing the body would involve challenges but it could take its cues from the conventional financial auditing profession.

The Islamic Corporation for the Development of the Private Sector (ICD) has celebrated the completion of the First Cohort of its Islamic Finance Talent Development Program (IFTDP). The IFTDP has been designed for mid-career professionals who possess prodigious leadership competencies. Its sole objective is to build up a pool of highly talented Islamic finance executives who are capable of leading the industry in the future. While the IFTDP is the latest addition by ICD to develop world-class Islamic finance executives, the Young Professional Program (YPP) has been the preeminent program preparing outstanding young graduates to become global development leaders. Both programs are based on the belief that attracting and retaining talent is the most powerful factor behind the success and excellence of organizations.

Indonesia has a history of high inflation and a dependence on foreign capital. The Indonesian Rupiah was Asia’s worst performing emerging market currency in 2013. But Indonesia is also the world’s most populous Muslim nation. In order to reduce its reliance on other economies, the country’s religious ministry has built up $5.4 billion in reserves from deposits made by the millions of its citizens seeking to make the pilgrimage, or Hajj, to Saudi Arabia each year. Last year, the Hajj department began to invest in Sharia compliant bonds issued by the Indonesian government. Like its neighbor Malaysia, the country is now setting up a Hajj financial management agency, which could realistically play a key role in developing the country’s Islamic finance markets and reduce its reliance on offshore funds.

Islamic finance could develop in North Africa, according to a report titled "Islamic Finance Could Make Inroads Into North Africa" published by Standard & Poor's Ratings Services. Large current account deficits and declining conventional financing sources have prompted governments from Arab spring countries to look at opportunities offered by Islamic finance. Moreover, public awareness is increasing. Egypt, Tunisia, and Morocco have recently taken steps to implement policies to support the development of Islamic finance. Nevertheless, Islamic finance in this region has yet to demonstrate its economic added value, through creating access to a new class of investors or by offering Sharia-compliant products at costs comparable with their conventional counterparts.

Italy is seeking trade and investment with wealthy Gulf Arab states as a way to grow out of its debt problems. Gulf investors have already shown considerable interest in Italy's luxury good firms; in 2012, for example, Italian fashion brand Valentino was bought by Qatar's royal family. Moreover, Kuwait's sovereign wealth fund announced this month that it would invest 500 million euros ($685 million) in Italian companies in coordination with the Italian government's own strategic investment fund. Italy made a similar deal with Qatar last year. These activities should include a review of existing regulations. Currently, however, only broad discussions are taking place with Italian policy makers and no specific agenda is in place. Italian companies have explored Islamic financing options in the past but did not do deals, partly because of a lack of regulatory support in Italy.

The Islamic Banking and Finance Society (IBFS) was inaugurated at Oxford Union Debating Chamber last Wednesday. The new society aims at acting as a platform for the Islamic finance as well as creating relationships between professionals in Islamic banking and finance students at Oxford. Financial experts have debated aspects of Islamic finance and banking, offering future economists a platform to better understand the industry. Presentations from Islamic finance Experts have also highlighted the ethical spirit of Islamic finance. The United Kingdom is one of the leading countries in the European Union to have Islamic banks. It is also developing its takaful market for Islamic insurance. Moreover, the UK also has a strong foothold in developing products such as commodity murabaha and Islamic retail services.

Sultan Choudhury, managing director of Islamic Bank of Britain, discussed findings from a poll of more than 300 investors by IBB, which showed one-third of respondents were non-Muslim. Some 66 per cent of those surveyed believed sharia finance was appropriate in a modern western society. A similar number (60 per cent) said sharia finance was relevant to all faiths, while more than half (58 per cent) said they considered Islamic finance to be an ethical system. IBB also reported 81 per cent of its customers said they were likely to use sharia-compliant finance again. This first piece of research will shape how the retail market for Islamic finance evolves, he added.

Since Shariah itself is very wide, selectiveness is needed so the most relevant aspect of Shariah is being exposed to the students of Islamic finance. The starting point has to be “Usul Al- Fiqh” which embodies the study of the sources of Islamic law and the methodology for its development. The second most important aspect of Shariah that is relevant to Islamic finance has to be laws of contracts. While these two aspects of Shariah form the main body of Shariah knowledge in Islamic finance, it is imperative for the students to appreciate the various Shariah issues that are begining to emerge in the market. Then there is the technical knowledge, which covers the basic theories of finance itself as well as banking, insurance, capital market and wealth management.

The Inauguration of the Islamic Banking and Finance Society (IBFS) at the Oxford Union Debating Chamber on February 12 featured presentations by leading figures from the Islamic finance world. Keynote speakers included Salah Jaidah, vice chairman of Mena at Deutsche Bank and chief country officer for Deutsche Bank Qatar; Baroness Warsi, Senior Minister of State and Minister for Faith and Communities, and the Ministerial lead on Islamic Finance; Nigel Denison, executive director of Bank of London and the Middle East (BLME), and Azeemeh Zaheer, vice president of Gatehouse Bank and former vice consul, US oil & gas sector head for the British Consulate General. The IBFS hopes to act as a platform for leading professionals in Islamic banking to create relationships with students at Oxford interested in pursuing a career in finance.

Our employer of the week has several vacancies to offer job seekers out there. Gulf African Bank which opened its doors in the country in 2008 is looking for customer service officers, product development, shariah compliance officers and tellers. Swaleh Sharif who is the human resource director says the deadline to submit your applications is in two months’ time.

The Shariah-compliant sector has grown to $1.6 trillion in assets over the past three decades, which attracts Muslim and non-Muslim financiers from around the globe who noticed the growing investor pool. Several countries have already made forays into the sector, like the UK and several African nations. It’s generally understood that money will be used to finance projects that are socially responsible. That way, even if someone purchased a sovereign sukuk, they know the money will be spent on activities that promote social good. However, many companies don’t understand how to access some of the Shariah-compliant capital, how to structure sukuk or how it affects costs.

An independent legal entity should oversee the way in which Islamic financial institutions certify they are following Sharia principles, Kuwait’s central bank governor Mohammad Al Hashel has said. Currently, boards of Sharia scholars at financial institutions rule on whether activities and products follow religious principles and they are also involved in audits. At the same time, the scholars are on the payroll of the Islamic banks which they vet, an arrangement contrary to good governance. The growing role of Islamic finance in some national economies is now prompting government watchdogs to pay more attention to the sector. Clear and specific professional frameworks for the duties and responsibilities of Sharia authorities and their audit function are needed.