ASEAN - CAPITAL MARKETS - Islamic Bond Alert

PT BANK SYARIAH BRI: The Islamic banking arm of Indonesia’s second-largest lender by assets may sell sukuk in the next one to two years to support expansion, President Director Ventje Rahardjo told reporters in Jakarta. 

PT BANK MUAMALAT INDONESIA: Indonesia’s second-largest Islamic bank will sell $50 million of dollar-denominated sukuk with a maturity of not more than five years in 2011, Hendiarto, chief financial officer at the bank, told reporters on July 21. The lender is also planning to sell 800 billion rupiah ($89 million) of local-currency Islamic bonds in 2012, Hendiarto said.  (source)

MALAYSIA - LIQUIDITY MANAGEMENT - IILM To Issue First Sukuk In 6 Months, Says Zeti

KUALA LUMPUR, Nov 15 (Bernama) - The International Islamic Liquidity Management Corporation (IILM) is expected to issue its first sukuk in the next six months, as it will contribute to better liquidity management, Bank Negara Malaysia (BNM) Governor Tan Sri Zeti akhtar Aziz said Tuesday.

"We are about to get rated for the issuance short-term instruments and we are in the process of all the parameters as well as to get the allocation of high-quality underlying assets. (source)

MALAYSIA - BANKING - Islamic banks urged to boost short-term syariah-compliant products Read more: Islamic banks urged to boost short-term syariah-compliant products

KUALA LUMPUR: Islamic banks in the country Malaysia have been urged to introduce more short-term syariah-compliant products to attract foreign investors.

 

We always have investors in Malaysia looking for syariah-shariah compliant products and sometimes, from the risk management perspective, because of due to the risk management perspective, they are constrained in putting their investment into investing in Islamic assets. that they have.

Hence, they will go abroad and invest in syariah-compliant products overseas,” said Amanie Islamic Finance Consultancy and Education LLC managing director, Dr Mohd Daud Bakar. (source)

INDONESIA - MALASYA - THAILAND - Market Review

INDONESIA: The government will likely sell a global sukuk later than September, Rahmat Waluyanto, director general at the finance ministry’s debt management office, said in Jakarta. Indonesia doesn’t have urgent funding needs and is looking for the right timing for the sale because of global market conditions, Waluyanto said. The government will sell a “maximum” of $1 billion of Islamic bonds, Finance Minister Agus Martowardojo said Aug. 23.  (source)

MALAYSIA - FINANCE - IILM Chief: Main Challenge Is To Appreciate All Jurisdictions

JAKARTA, July 19 (Bernama) -- The main challenge now for the International Islamic Liquidity Management (IILM) Corporation, perhaps, is to find the most common denominator among the jurisdictions for the global Islamic finance market, said Chief Executive Officer Mahmoud AbuShamma.

"We have to appreciate the different jurisdictions. We have institutions from Asia, Middle East and others. That's the main challenge," he said. (source)

INDONESIA - EVENTS - High level conference - VP : Sukuk balances global portfolio flows

REPUBLIKA.CO.ID, JAKARTA - Vice President Boediono said the sukuk (bonds / Islamic bonds) to balance the flow of global portfolio funds into Indonesia and became an alternative source of funding for infrastructure development in Indonesia. "For Indonesia, the global sukuk market has become an alternative source of funding for infrastructure and other investments. Simultaneously sukuk market was used as a counterweight to global portfolio flows into Indonesia," said vice president at the Joint High Level Conference On Islamic Finance in Jakarta Monday.
According to Vice President, sukuk continues to experience significant development in various countries, not only in Islamic countries. Even China has also begun to pay serious attention to the development of the global sukuk market. (source)

MALAYSIA - BANKING - Uncertainty, disparity in Islamic finance pose challenges

The uncertainty and disparity in some areas of Islamic finance can at times be an added cost for industry players or turn them away from it, said a senior Securities Commission (SC) director.

Zainal Izlan Zainal Abidin, the SC executive director, said the legal, regulatory and tax frameworks for Islamic finance sometimes differ from one market jurisdiction to another, and this poses a challenge when one goes into cross border situations. (source)

MALAYSIA - LEGAL - Uncertainty, disparity in Islamic finance pose challenges

KUALA LUMPUR: The uncertainty and disparity in some areas of Islamic finance can at times be an added cost for industry players or turn them away from it, said a senior Securities Commission (SC) director.

 

Zainal Izlan Zainal Abidin, the SC executive director, said the legal, regulatory and tax frameworks for Islamic finance sometimes differ from one market jurisdiction to another, and this poses a challenge when one goes into cross border situations.

"As a result, going through the Islamic finance route may, at times, be less clear or economical than the conventional route.

"Until these issues are satisfactorily addressed, there will be some degrees of apprehension among industry players and practitioners to fully embrace Islamic finance," he said. (source)

SINGAPORE - Singapore officials rue low understanding of Islamic finance among investors

It has almost become a ritual that there has to be some sort of announcement either by the government, regulator or a financial institution at international conferences on Islamic finance. 

Singapore is no exception. Not surprisingly, Lim Hng Kiang, Minister for Trade and Industry, who is also the Deputy Chairman, Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS) (the financial regulator), announced a few days ago at one such conference in the island state that Singapore will in due course issue new income tax regulations for Islamic finance to provide greater tax clarity and certainty to the industry. (source)

CAPITAL MARKETS - IILM likely to issue maiden commercial debt by Dec

THE International Islamic Liquidity Management Corp (IILM) is expected to issue its first commercial papers by the end of the year, said Bank Negara deputy governor Datuk Mohd Razif Abdul Kadir.

The short-term multi-currency instrument will help member central banks to manage liquidity in their Islamic finance markets. (full story)

INTERNATIONAL - Bank Indonesia will join IILM

JAKARTA: Bank Indonesia (BI) secured an approval from the House Commission XI to join International Islamic Liquidity Management (IILM). Such integration is expected to assist Shariah banking in managing liquidity.

Governor of Bank Indonesia Darmin Nasution perceived an efficient financial liquidity management as a pivotal element to improve the performance of Sharia banking institution. According to him, such integration will further foster the growth of Sharia banking in the future. (source)

INTERNATIONAL - BI seeks House approval for $5m to grow Islamic finance

Bank Indonesia (BI) is seeking the House of Representatives’ approval for $5 million in capitalization funds for the International Islamic Liquidity Management (IILM) to develop sharia financing in Indonesia, home to the world’s largest Muslim population.

BI Governor Darmin Nasution on Monday said IILM members comprised 12 countries and multinational institutions, including Iran, Malaysia, Kuwait, Luxemburg, Qatar and the United Arab Emirates, the Islamic Development Bank (IDB), the Islamic Corporation for the Development of the Private Sector (ICD) and the Islamic Financial Services Board (IGFB). (source)

MALAYSIA - FINANCE - 2010 Stronger global Islamic finance hub status

THE year 2010 saw the expansion of Islamic finance in Malaysia as the Islamic banking, takaful and Islamic capital market grew, in line with the economic recovery.

During the year, the country strengthened its position as a global hub for Islamic finance, supported by the Malaysia International Islamic Financial Centre (MIFC) initiative.

The highlight of the achievements in the local Islamic finance sector last year (2010) has to be the recognition given to Bank Negara Governor Tan Sri Dr Zeti Akhtar Aziz locally and abroad.

Zeti was the first woman recipient, in 24 years, of the national-level Ma'al Hijrah award. She was recognised for helping pull the country out of the 1998 financial crisis, making Malaysia a financial hub and implementing Islamic banking.

MARKETS - IILM takes a step closer to becoming a reality

The International Islamic Liquidity Management Corporation (IILM), which was launched in Kuala Lumpur in October, took a step closer to becoming a reality when its governing board last week appointed Mahmoud AbuShamma as its inaugural chief executive officer (CEO), for a three-year tenure effective Feb. 1, 2011.

AbuShamma’s tenure is also subject to the adoption by the Malaysian Parliament, the Dewan Rakyat, of a Special Enabling Act which would accord the IILM a special diplomatic status and its attendant privileges.

FINANCE - IILM - Appointment of Chief Executive Officer and Shariah Committee of the IILM

[Kuala Lumpur and  Jeddah, 13 December 2010 / 7 Muharam 1432] - The International Islamic Liquidity Management Corporation (IILM) wishes to announce the appointment of Mr. Mahmoud AbuShamma as its first Chief Executive Officer (CEO) for a three-year tenure effective 1 February 2011.

Prior to his appointment at the IILM, Mr. Mahmoud has served as the Global Head of HSBC Amanah Coverage at HSBC Bank Middle East Limited, Dubai in charge of critical HSBC Amanah relationships globally, including Governments, high networth individuals and top corporate clients. He was instrumental in establishing the HSBC Amanah Syariah unit – the first foreign bank to open an Islamic retail banking unit in Indonesia, and served as its Head from 2003 to 2010. In London, he established and headed the HSBC's Islamic Treasury Unit and originated the first Islamic Syndication by HSBC Amanah.

IILM - Islamic finance liquidity body to issue sukuk in '11

A new global Islamic liquidity management corporation backed by central banks will start issuing Islamic bonds next year to help Islamic banks manage their liquidity, a board member said on Tuesday.

Liquidity management is seen as the weak point of the emerging Islamic finance industry as it currently relies on the use of commodity murabaha, a money market instrument only grudgingly accepted by Islamic scholars for lack of alternatives.

FINANCE - Despite Mideast Debt Woes, Shariah Banking Still Rising

A year after Dubai’s monster debt problems sent shockwaves though the Islamic bond world, sukuk is thriving again — and with it, Malaysia’s role as the center of gravity of international Islamic finance.

Although Islamic banking, investment and insurance activity are again gaining global ground, it is still relatively small and mainly concentrated in Malaysia and the United Arab Emirates, which are able to use local liquidity and government help to promote it outside their borders.

FINANCE - IILM - Retooling Liquidity Management

Islamic repos, or repurchase agreements, provide a new tool in creating and managing liquidity in the Islamic interbank money market. SCOTT WEBER identifies what instruments are available in the market and the extent to which they are being utilized.

Islamic repos aim to provide Islamic financial institutions with an additional avenue to source their funding requirements, providing banks with relevant tools to effectively manage their liquidity needs allowing the banks to finance its asset inventory.

FINANCE - IILM - BI forms International Islamic Liquidity Management Corporation (IILM)

Bank Indonesia,together with 10 other central banks and two multilateral organisations, signed an agreement on 25thOctober 2010 in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia to establish the International Islamic Liquidity Management Corporation (IILM). This agreement, facilitated by the Islamic Financial Services Board (IFSB), marks collaboration regarding an array of elements involved with current global initiatives aimed at assisting institutions that offer sharia-based financial services in dealing with their efficient and effective management of liquidity. In addition, this initiative will facilitate a surge in investment flows to the Islamic financial services industry. 

FINANCE - IILM - BNM’s Islamic liquidity plan

KUALA LUMPUR: Bank Negara Malaysia (BNM)’s International Islamic Liquidity Management Corp (IILM) will issue short-term papers as part of efforts to enhance cross-border flows.

According to BNM governor Tan Sri Dr Zeti Akhtar Aziz, the short-term papers will be issued in international reserve currencies, such as the US dollar and the euro.