IslamicFinance.de

Kuwait Turkish Participation Bank Inc has been granted a licence by the Qatar Financial Centre ( QFC ) Authority, with effect from September 15 2013, to establish a branch in the QFC . The bank expects to open its QFC branch in about two months. It is licenced to undertake deposit taking; providing and arranging Islamic credit facilities dealing in Islamic investments and managing Islamic investments. The bank is a Turkish Islamic bank with 62 percent owned by Kuwait Finance House, Kuwait, 9 percent by PIFSS, Kuwait, 9 percent by Islamic Development Bank, Saudi Arabia, and 18 percent by Turkish Awqaf. It is the first and only Turkish bank to have a presence in Qatar.

The Qatar Financial Centre (QFC) has a tax system that enables sukuk transactions to be carried out without excessive tax costs, according to a study conducted by the experts Mohamed Amin, Salah Gueydi and Hafiz Choudhury. The study reviewed the tax treatment of four common Islamic finance structures ‘murabaha’, ‘sukuk’, ‘salaam’ and ‘istisna’ in the eight Mena countries. Mr. Amin said the study shows clearly that the additional transactions required by Islamic finance are at risk of being subject to taxes, and can make Islamic finance transactions prohibitively expensive. Only Turkey and the QFC have modified their tax laws to facilitate Islamic finance.

Qatar Financial Centre Regulatory Authority has authorised Takaful International Company BSC ("TIC") to establish a branch within the Qatar Financial Centre.