IslamicFinance.de

The 12th International Conference on Islamic Economics and Finance (ICIEF) was held in Istanbul this month. It was organized by Istanbul Sabahattin Zaim University, Islamic Research and Education Institute (IRTI) and the Islamic Development Bank (IDB). Because of the pandemic the conference committee decided to organize it virtually. 14 eminent personalities and Islamic finance experts shared their thoughts on the future of Islamic economics and finance. Altogether, 132 papers out of some 472 submissions from 40 different countries were selected for presentation. Some papers focused on implementing a circular economic model that facilitates environment-friendly production and consumption. The circular economy concept is very much aligned with the concept of sustainable development and may support achieving the United Nations' SDGs by 2030. Presenters repeatedly underscored that the Islamic financial system can be a major driver in the transformation toward a circular economy.

Turkey's President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said Islamic economic system is the key to getting out of crisis as global economy continues to suffer from coronavirus pandemic. President Erdogan said the loss of nearly 440,000 lives worldwide can't be attributed to Covid-19 alone, saying many countries have an economic system that protects only strong and the rich. Erdogan said Turkey is among the countries that has fought the pandemic with the least damage. Pointing out the country’s first-quarter growth of 4.5%, Erdogan said that Turkey has shown that it distinguished itself positively from other countries not only in the health sector but also in the economy, during the Covid-19 pandemic.

The fifth International Albaraka Calligraphy Competition Exhibition meets art lovers on Instagram. Albaraka Türk continues to boost its success in culture and art events as well as in participation banking. The fifth edition of the bank’s International Calligraphy Competition Exhibition was postponed due to the coronavirus pandemic and later went online on Instagram. The works in the competition have been decorated with illumination and included in the collection. The exhibition has been given a new form with unique content and presented to art lovers on Albaraka Sanat's official Instagram account ( https://www.instagram.com/albarakasanat/) with over 70 stories in total.

The Islamic Development Bank (IsDB) and Türk Eximbank signed a syndicated murabaha deal of $100 million to finance small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs). The new murabaha facility is expected to increase companies' export capacity and workforce, similar to the previous one. According to IsDB, the new facility will play a significant role to alleviate the economic impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on the manufacturing sector by providing long-term funding to companies to finance their capital expenditures.

At the moment there are six Islamic banks operating in Turkey, with Kuveyt Turk, Turkiye Finans and Albaraka Turk holding around three quarters of their market share. Harun Çelik, the Islamic Trade Finance Corporation’s (ITFC) regional head for Turkey, says that agriculture is one of the sectors where Islamic banks have big growth potential. Out of almost Tl120bn (US$18.5bn) of agricultural finance in Turkey, the six Islamic banks are only getting 1% of that. That’s where he sees growth potential. Perhaps the greatest nascent opportunity lies with small-to-medium enterprises (SMEs). One useful emerging tool for SMEs could be factoring. A form of supply chain finance, factoring typically involves a supplier selling its invoices to a third party at a discount. For the supplier it means quicker access to working capital, while the third party makes its profit once the invoices are paid.

Turkey saw $102 million worth of angel investments come into the country in 2019, a 66% year-on-year increase, amid efforts to improve venture capital and angel investment fields in the country. Turkey is the fourth largest angel investment country in Europe with 141 angel investors. The two-day congress on angel investment hosts hundreds of participants from 92 countries and 132 international speakers in 24 panels. As part of the WBAF's World Congress 2020, agreements were signed with the Mali government, the Mexican Foreign Affairs Ministry, the Royal Academy of Science International Trust, the Antalya OIS and the Antalya Technopark, the Three Cultures Foundation, the World Free Zones Association, the World Association of Women Entrepreneurs and Bahrain Entrepreneurs Organization.

According to Moody's Investors Service, Turkey's Islamic banking assets are set to double within 10 years from a low level as government initiatives drive growth in the sector. Turkey's Islamic finance sector currently is smaller than other large Muslim countries. The main reason is the relatively small number of Islamic banks and their limited distribution networks within Turkey. Islamic banks are called participation banks in Turkey and are regulated by the Banking Regulation and Supervision Agency (BRSA). They are required by law to become a member of the Participation Banks Association of Turkey (PBAT). Between 2014 and 2015 the Turkish government established two new state-owned participation banks and a new one in 2019. Turkey's ambition is to establish Istanbul as a global financial center. It aims to raise the share of financial services in Turkish GDP to 6% by 2023 from 3% at the end of 2018.

According to Moody's Investors Service, Turkey's Islamic banking assets are expected to double in the following 10 years as a result of government initiatives and new regulation that push the sector's expansion. With just over 5.8% of banking assets at the end of September, Turkey's Islamic finance sector is currently smaller than other large Muslim countries. Evolving regulation and supervision, as well as plans to equalise tax treatment for equivalent financial activities of commercial and Islamic finance institutions are expected to boost the sector. Turkey established three new state-owned Islamic banks from 2015 to 2019. Furthermore, the state-funded $2.6 billion (2.36 billion euro) International Financial Centre in Istanbul (IIFC) is scheduled to open in 2023.

The Accounting and Auditing Organisation for Islamic Financial Institutions (AAOIFI) has signed an MOU with the Participation Banks Association of Turkey (TKBB) to collaborate in the promotion of Islamic finance in Turkey. AAOIFI and TKBB agreed to work in areas of common interest, such as the meaningful exchange of information and conducting joint capacity-building programmes. Osman Akyüz, the Secretary General of TKBB, said that they would also focus on increased representation of Turkish experts in AAOIFI’s boards and committees. AAOIFI Secretary-General Omar Mustafa Ansari emphasized the role of TKBB for the growth of Islamic finance in Turkey and assured the full support of their initiatives and activities.

Turkey has been talking a lot about Arab purchases in the country. Most recently, the issue of Arab acquisitions has made headlines as part of a simmering controversy over a government plan to build an artificial waterway in Istanbul as an alternative to the Bosporus. Sheikha Moza bint Nasser, the mother of the Qatari emir, is among the buyers who have reportedly purchased 4.4 hectares of land in the area. While real estate sales to foreigners account for less than 3% of Turkey’s export revenues, Gulf investors hold only 9% of direct foreign investments in the country. In sum, any media buzz suggesting an Arab buying spree in Turkey is overblown.

Prime Minister Dr Mahathir Mohamad brought an idea of a gold dinar as an international reserve currency for Muslim countries in preference to the US dollar as the dollar was sometimes unstable. Nazari Ismail, a professor of economics at Universiti Malaya thinks, that the idea is not reliable, as countries as Saudi Arabia, Qatar, Pakistan and Indonesia would be not interested in the prime ministers proposal.

At the ongoing Kuala Lumpur Summit 2019, leaders of the Muslim world have pressed for alternative currency for use in trade and seek independence from US Dollar. Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said Muslim countries should try to create new transaction systems. He added that Islamic finance needs to be part of the agenda just like in Malaysia. Meanwhile, Iran's President Hassan Rouhani was of the view that Muslim nations should come up with a new own cryptocurrency. Malaysia's Prime Minister Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad also believes that a united cryptocurrency is needed for Muslim states, as a cryptocurrency can cut through bureaucratic and market fluctuations. He added that utilising cryptocurrency or national currency would help attain independence from over-reliance on the US dollar.

Qatar has taken the lead in reaching out to Malaysia and Turkey through which the country aims to be the dominant player in the global Shariah financial landscape. Under the proposed plan, Turkey would cover Islamic finance needs in Europe, Qatar would serve the greater Middle East and North Africa and Malaysia will continue to serve the Asian markets. The London Stock Exchange is currently a global venue for the issuance of sukuk, while Hong Kong and Luxembourg have also made inroads but Qatar believes the market should be led by Muslim countries. Qatar Financial Center (QFC) Authority CEO Yousuf Mohamed al-Jaida has a vision to cover the entire globe’s Islamic financial transactions between three financial centres, Doha, Istanbul and Malaysia, therefore he sees a need to share platforms and technology.

Ready to be taken to the next level, the burgeoning sector of Islamic finance is ready to take root in new regions through Turkey, Malaysia and Qatar. According to Yousuf Al-Jaida, CEO of the Qatar Financial Centre, Malaysia could act as a gateway for Islamic finance into Asia, with Turkey into Europe and Qatar the Middle East and Africa. He stressed that Malaysia was ready with its legal framework to facilitate the sector, while Qatar and Turkey need to step up and do more for the sector. Al-Jaida said these three countries could form a large platform to share experience, technology and knowledge. He is optimistic and sees a bright future, as Islamic finance is now growing at an even quicker pace than conventional finance.

When thinking of countries that are ahead of the curve in crypto adoption, Turkey might not be the first place that springs to mind. However, Turkey has undoubtedly become a crypto giant, and with President Recep Tayyip Erdogan recently announcing that testing of the digital lira is to be finalized in 2020, crypto is destined to become even more popular. While the country’s government was initially reluctant to embrace cryptocurrencies, the people had always found utility in it. The online payment sector in Turkey had been ready to adopt crypto, but the first opportunity only came when PayPal was banned in the country. Turkey’s Ministry of Industry and Technology announced plans to establish a national blockchain infrastructure. Turkey has a vision of making Istanbul a financial center, and all institutions are working toward that end.

Albaraka Turk Katilim Bankasi has issued TRL 600 million dual-tranche Sukuk through its subsidiary Bereket Varl?k Kiralama Sirketi. While the targeted total amount of the issuance was TRL 450 million, the total amount reached TRL 600 million. The certificates had two different tenors as 98 days and 147 days and the size of each tranche was TRL 450 million and TRL 150 million respectively. Malek K. Temsah, Albaraka Turk’s Assistant General Manager of Treasury, said that the uniqueness of this transaction was in its dual-tenured nature, which offered investors additional flexibility.

Turkey is host to an estimated 4 million refugees, more than are living in any other country. This paper assesses “the feasibility of microfinance as an appropriate strategy for the financial inclusion of refugees in Turkey.” The authors identify some of the risks of lending to refugee populations and steps that can be taken to mitigate them. Borrowed funds may be used for unapproved purposes such as to repay other debts. This may be mitigated by visiting the borrower’s place of work to assess how the credit is to be used. Excluding local residents from lending programs can create resentment. This may be mitigated by issuing loans to groups whose members span both the local and refugee populations. Refugees may move away, making recovery of loan repayments more challenging. This can be mitigated by assessing a loan applicant’s level of integration into the local community.

Group Chief Executive Officer at Kuwait Finance House(KFH), Mazin Saad Al-Nahedh, emphasized that KFH-Turkey enjoys robust financial position and very strong liquidity ratios as per the regulatory authority’s requirements in Turkey and Kuwait, not to mention as per the international standard Basel III.

Istanbul is hosting a two-day conference to discuss the economic inclusion of young refugees in their host communities. The conference is set to bring together more than 150 stakeholders from the MENA region, policymakers, international and national NGOs, private sector, academia, and entrepreneurs. Participants will discuss various methods for enhancing economic inclusion of refugees and host communities in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region. The two-day program will be held in partnership between the Dutch International NGO Spark and Islamic Development Bank (IsDB), with the Islamic Solidarity Fund for Development (ISFD) and the Dutch Ministry of Foreign Affairs as sponsors.

Turkey’s Takasbank launched its blockchain-based electronic platform for trading gold called BiGA. The project aims to enable people to transfer physical gold stored at the Borsa Istanbul Stock Exchange via digitized gold units on a blockchain. Although the units will have the same form and function as physically backed stablecoins, their value will be tied to the traded goal. The bank will provide users with a wallet to store the tokens, and BiGA can eventually be used as an e-commerce payment option. Notably, the word “BiGA” is the Turkish abbreviation for one gram of gold. Earlier this week, New York-based Paxos Trust Company has launched PAX Gold, a gold-backed Ethereum token, with approval from the New York State Department of Finance Services. One PAXG token will be supported by one fine troy ounce of London Good Delivery gold stored in professional vault facilities in London.