IslamicFinance.de

Russian state-owned Sberbank will establish a presence in Abu Dhabi by the end of the year. Sberbank has also signed an agreement with Abu Dhabi sovereign investor Mubadala Investment Company. The agreement covers cooperation in areas including co-investments, debt and equity financing, long-term financing of Mubadala projects in Russia and other territories. It also includes the potential cooperation and investments in a broad range of areas including Islamic finance, artificial intelligence, cybersecurity, life sciences, venture capital, telemedicine and education. The bank is new to Islamic finance. In August it announced that it had structured a trade finance deal, its first-ever, with the International Islamic Trade Finance Corporation (ITFC).

Russia's state-controlled Sberbank will acquire 25% of the PayZakat platform that collects charity for Muslims in need. PayZakat is a start-up that won Sberbank’s first Sber#Up corporate accelerator competition for its own employees, and the bank sees global and universal potential for the platform. The PayZakat platform allows its users to calculate their contribution amount, and channel it to the charity of their choice. Chat bots integrated into social networks help with the process and provide status updates on the contribution. Sberbank is at the forefront of Russian digital development and is preparing to launch its Sber digital ecosystem in the short- to medium-term.

Sberbank is considering setting up an Islamic finance entity and will propose regulatory changes to facilitate sharia-compliant business. Vnesheconombank and Tatfondbank are also developing Islamic finance products. Legislation will need to be passed in Russia to make Islamic finance cost-effective. Taxation is often an obstacle, as transactions have double or triple tax duties since they require multiple transfers of underlying assets. Sberbank is currently testing pilot transactions in leasing, financing food production and trading. Oleg Ganeev, deputy chairman at Sberbank, said the decision on whether to set up a separate entity could come by next year. He added that local businesses could also consider issuing sukuk, as they have a variety of tangible assets that can support such deals.

Sberbank received official certification for its Mudaraba Finance transaction from Shariyah Review Bureau (SRB). The bank also reaffirmed that it would remain fully committed to Sharia compliant financial activities for its customers. Sberbank, based in Moscow, currently has 16 thousand branches in all 83 constituent entities of the Russian Federation. It is the largest bank of Russia and the leading financial institution in the country. Yasser S. Dahlawi, CEO and Founder of SRB, noted that the Shariyah Review Bureau would continue to review and supervise Sberbank’s transaction and sharing best practices of the Sharia complaint marketplace.

Vnesheconombank, Sberbank and Tatfondbank are going to take part in the 23rdWorld Islamic Banking Conference in Bahrain from 5 to 7 of December 2016. The three banks are working on launching Islamic finance products to get access to the investors from the Gulf countries and Southeast Asia. According to Linar Yakupov, head of the Association of Regional Investment Agencies of the Russian Federation, there is growing interest from other 20 Russian banks. However, the current legislation system of Russia complicates the progress. It forbids banks from engaging in commercial activities, so they can operate only a limited range of assets.

Russia continues to open new avenues and to provide new instruments for international investors through Islamic finance. Representatives of major banks and a high official of the Russian central bank will partake in the 23rd World Islamic Banking Conference in Bahrain’s capital Manama. The reason why Moscow is increasingly opening up to Islamic finance lies mainly within its quest to make up for a shortfall caused by Western sanctions. Three state-linked Russian banks, Vnesheconombank, Sberbank and Tatfondbank have all signed agreements with the Islamic Development Bank (IDB) in order to launch Islamic finance products. Maxim Osintsev, executive director at Sberbank, said there was now political will for Islamic finance to be developed in Russia. The ice has broken and people now understand that Islamic banking products can be in demand.

Two of the largest Russian banks will soon incorporate Islamic banking rules into their line of work. The proposal was made by Rustam Minnikhanov, President of Tatarstan and banks are displaying real interest. Minnikhanov pointed out that should the two banks incorporate the new system of transactions, Russia would be forced to revise a score of fiscal laws and regulations. Sberbank's First Deputy Chairman, Maxim Poletaev, said the bank plans several pilot transactions in autumn 2016 in the Republic of Tatarstan.

Herman Gref, the head of Russia’s largest bank Sberbank, welcomed the introduction of Islamic banking in the country’s traditionally Muslim regions, saying it would help attract capital from Arab countries. The rapid growth of the Muslim population in Russia contributes to a sharp increase in demand for Islamic banking tools expected in the coming years, said Samir Tagiyev, manager for business development in the CIS and Europe, the Islamic Corporation for the Development of the Private Sector (ICD). The Russian government has to elaborate a legal framework that will integrate Islamic banking into Russia's financial system.