INDONESIA - TAKAFUL - COOPERATION: Jaya Protection Takaful Islamic banking is ready trailer

www.bisnis.com - JAKARTA: PT Jaya Protection Takaful, Islamic general insurance company subsidiary of PT Jaya Protection, aiming for cooperation with a number of Islamic banks for the sale of insurance products through banks (bancassurance).

Yudha Primary, President Director of PT Jaya Protection Takaful (Japro Takaful), said the strengthening of the bancassurance distribution channel is one of the strategies to be undertaken by companies to drive business growth this year.

"We need partners that are many and strong. We want to work with several banks. One was with Bank Muamalat, we are preparing the consortium, "he told Business, last weekend.  (source)

INDONESIA - MICRO FINANCE - Islamic Bank Expands Micro Finance Sector

REPUBLIKA.CO.ID, JAKARTA - A number of Islamic banks by 2012 this will increase the portfolio of micro-financing to the sector. Micro-segmentation of the market sector are considered to have potential for a large customer.

World Bank ready to target a market segment of micro-financing through the construction of 55 units of micro in 2012. This micro unit will specifically serve the micro-finance and will be distributed to all parts of Indonesia. (source)

INDONESIA - BANKING - BI Optimistic Sharia Banking Assets Grow 70 Percent in 2012

REPUBLIKA.CO.ID, JAKARTA - Bank Indonesia is optimistic national Islamic banking assets will grow by 70 percent in 2012. The indicators, it is still a lot of banks are opening Islamic services. From recent data, the Islamic banking assets in October 2011 amounting to Rp 127 trillion.

''Pessimistic figure, next year's Islamic banking assets will grow at least 40 percent,''said Deputy Governor of Bank Indonesia, Halim Alamsyah, after the opening of Sharia Center at the Office of Bank Indonesia Bandung, Thursday (15/12). (source)

INDONESIA - BANKING - Bank Mandiri to Keep Growing

livetradingnews.com - Bank Mandiri, Indonesia’s largest lender by assets, predicts lending to grow 21%, the company said on Friday.

Bank Mandiri loan growth target would be slightly lower than the target made by Bank Indonesia last week.

Shayne Heffernan has issued a Strong Buy PT Bank Mandiri (Persero) Tbk in 2010 with a Price target of 9000RP by 2012. (source)

INDONESIA - OPINION - One Way to Break Indonesian Banks

Jakarta’s financial circles are atwitter over a proposed change to banking ownership laws. In August, the government announced that it would soon be imposing a limit on the proportion of a bank that could be owned by any single entity. The time frame for the rule’s introduction was undefined, as was the concentration threshold — but 50 percent is the figure being bandied about.   (source)

INDONESIA - LEASING - Al Ijarah focus on retail

JAKARTA-PT Al-Ijarah Indonesia Finance (ALIF) until the end of this year will focus on retail business instead of financing the corporate sector, because the market is very promising.

President Director of PT ALIF, Herbudhi S Tomo here on Friday said the company originally did business financing to corporations, but the growth is far slower than the retail sector.

"Therefore, with the remaining time available, the company will focus its attention to the retail market is still pretty good," he said. (source)

INDONESIA - OPINION - Bright prospect of Islamic banking

Currently, most of the giant international banks offer either an Islamic Commercial Bank (ICB) or an Islamic Business Unit (IBU). The question is, therefore, “How can national Islamic banking be developed?”

First of all, let us look at the infrastructure of Islamic banking during the last six years. A report titled “Islamic Banking Statistics April 2011”, which was issued by Bank Indonesia (BI) on June 15, 2011, found that ICB increased from only three banks with 304 offices in 2005 — when Islamic banking was born — to 11 banks with 1,215 offices by December 2010. (source)

INDONESIA - BANKING - Shariah Banks Doing Booming Business

The rapid expansion of Shariah banks in Indonesia paved the way for Shariah loans to increase by almost half in the first six months of the year, Investor Daily reported on Saturday, quoting a central bank director.

Mulya Siregar, director of Shariah banking at Bank Indonesia, said on Friday that Shariah loans rose 49 percent to Rp 83 trillion ($9.8 billion) through June, from the same period last year. He also said the Shariah financing-to-deposit ratio was at 95 percent.  (source)

INDONESIA - EVENTS - High level conference - Indonesia, Malaysia Look to Work Together to Boost Shariah Banking

The Indonesian and Malaysian central banks agreed on Monday to improve cooperation to boost the development of Islamic finance in the two nations.

“Islamic finance like Shariah banking is no longer just complementary but has now become a genuine alternative financing option,” said Darmin Nasution, the governor of Bank Indonesia. “So there is a strong need for Islamic banks in Malaysia and in Indonesia to improve their cooperation and develop the Islamic finance market.’’  (source)

INDONESIA - BANKING - BCA and NU sign cooperation

Jakarta (ANTARA News) - PT Bank Central Asia Tbk (BCA) and the Executive Board of the NU (NU), signed a memorandum of understanding for cooperation in education, health, and cooperatives.
The MOU was signed conducted between President John Setiaatmadja BCA Director and Chairman of the Board NU KH Said Agil Siraj here on Thursday.
John Setiaatmadja said, a memorandum of understanding that exists between the BCA with PNU is expected to provide added value for BCA banking services to customers, partners and society BCA including  members of the NU. (source)

BANKING - BCA Syariah Asset Reached IDR 970 Billion

Jakarta, (5/4). in its first anniversary in syariah banking business,  Bank Central Asia (BCA) Syariah’s asset that has reached IDR 970 billion which is increased by  30 %.

The President Direktur of BCA Syariah, Yana Rosiana  during the ceremony of its first anniversary said that this achievement as a result of its good management direction which is focused in its shariah business development. (full story)

BANKING - Shariah Banks Look to Farmers In an Effort to Grow Lending

Indonesia’s largest Shariah-compliant banks plan to increase lending to rural areas, where total agricultural loans have doubled over the past five years.

Bank Muamalat Indonesia is seeking to boost lending tenfold outside cities in 2011 after opening 30 new branches last year, said Luluk Mahfuda, head of Islamic corporate banking. BCA Syariah said it would add 15 outlets aimed at small businesses this year. (full story)

BANKING - Syariah Banks Targets 30% Profit Growth

Theindonesiatoday.com - National syariah banks targets to book profit of Rp1.36 trillion this year, grew by 30% from Rp1.05 trillion in 2010, Investor Daily reported this morning.

Mulya Siregar, director of Islamic banking at Bank Indoesia, said the profit growth will be supported by three syariah banks will fully operate this year. That three banks are PT Bank BCA Syariah, PT Bank Syariah BNI and PT Bank Maybank Syariah Indonesia. (source)

BANKING - Car Sales Leading Shariah Loans in Indonesia

Jan. 25 (Bloomberg) -- Record car sales in Indonesia helped fuel 50 percent growth in Shariah-compliant banking assets last year and Islamic lenders are setting up booths at automobile shows to further develop the market.

PT Bank Muamalat Indonesia, the country’s oldest Shariah- compliant lender, said consumer loans jumped 40 percent in 2010 after taking part in exhibitions last year. PT BCA Syariah, the Islamic unit of Indonesia’s biggest financial services company by market value, offers a rate of 11 percent on a five-year car loan. PT Bank Syariah Mandiri also attends the shows.

Tapping Indonesia’s burgeoning consumer loan demand will help the country’s Islamic finance industry catch up neighboring Malaysia, the world’s largest sukuk issuer. Shariah banking assets in Indonesia, home to the world’s biggest Muslim population, make up 3.2 percent of the total, compared with about 20 percent in Malaysia, after the government lagged behind in changing tax laws and offering incentives to spur growth. (source)

BANKING - BCA Syariah is still seeking for Syariah Business Potential

Jakarta, (3/11). The establishment of new full fledge Islamic Bank is not in line business growth opportunity. For example BCA Syariah is still seeking for syariah business potential to penetrate the Islamic Finance market Industry, as explained by the Director of BCA Syariah John Kosasih on the discussion of BCA Syariah performance toward the end of 2010.

Moreover John Kosasih said the opportunity to expand its business is huge and it has a specific market share in this Islamic banking business. The management of BCA has conducted a research on its potential market and it is would be very huge if it is to be developed further, that is why BCA established its full-fledge Islamic Bank.

BANKING - Sharia banks’ assets grow by nearly 45%

The total assets of sharia banks rose by nearly 45 percent during the first nine months of this year after several banks split their shariah banking divisions into separate banks.

Bank Indonesia (BI) director for sharia banking Mulya Siregar said Wednesday that up to September of this year, sharia banking assets reached Rp 85.9 trillion (US$9.6 billion), up 43 percent compared to that recorded in September of last year.