INDONESIA - BANKING - Islamic Banking Need to Prepare the MEA Infrastructure

INVESTOR DAILY INDONESIA  - JAKARTA - The Islamic banking in Indonesia will need to prepare supporting infrastructure in the face of the ASEAN Economic Community (MEA) in 2015.
"Infrastructure services include ease of payment and transaction-related business activity in real time with adequate technology and integrated network," said Director of the Directorate of Islamic Banking Bank Indonesia (BI), E Mulya Siregar, said here on Wednesday. (source)

MALAYSIA - JAPAN - Mizuho To Make Malaysia Global Hub For Islamic Finance

KUALA LUMPUR, Sept 5 (Bernama) -- Mizuho Corporate Bank Ltd (MHCB), one of the oldest banks in Japan, will make Malaysia its global hub for Islamic finance once it receives Bank Negara Malaysia's (BNM) approval.

MHCB, part of Mizuho Financial Group Inc, is one of the world's largest full-service financial conglomerates. (source)

WORLD - HALAL - Asean Needs To Explore World Halal Food Industry, Says Asean Sec-Gen

HAT YAI, July 28 (Bernama) -- Asean countries need to tap the vast potential existing in the world's halal food industry against a backdrop of improved economic status among Muslims countries, said the grouping's Secretary General Dr Surin Pitsuwan.

"The rise in middle-income population gives an opportunity for Asean countries to conquer this industry as the world's halal market stood at US$25 trillion, annually. (source)

INDONESIA - BANKING - Maybank To Increase Branches In Indonesia To 450 Over Next Two Years

KUALA LUMPUR, July 22 (Bernama) -- Malayan Banking Bhd (Maybank) plans to increase its branches under the group in Indonesia to 450 over the next two years from the present 330.

President/Chief Executive Officer Datuk Seri Abdul Wahid Omar said the plan was in sync with the bank's focus to expand in the Asean region, particularly Indonesia, Singapore and the Philippines.

"We have defined our focus which is Asean. We will concentrate on that. (source)

INDONESIA - EVENTS - High level conference - RI, Malaysia to promote ties on Islamic banking

Indonesia and Malaysia have agreed to establish a regulatory framework that will enable them to better synchronize their Islamic financial concepts.

As part of the plan, two memorandum of understandings (MoUs) were inked on Monday between the Indonesian Sharia Banks Association (Asbisindo), the Association of Islamic Banking Institutions Malaysia (AIBIM), as well as between Maybank Islamic Bhd and PT Bank Syariah Mandiri. (source)

PHILIPPINES - HALAL - Philippine finance minister pitches for Brunei Halal

Philippine Finance Secretary Cesar Purisima yesterday called for the joint promotion of the Coral Triangle and tourism in the BIMP-EAGA (Brunei-Indonesia-Malaysia-Philippines East Asean Growth Area) sub-region.

He said through BIMP-EAGA, Brunei's halal label can target Saudi Arabia's haj needs when it has to feed one million people for one month during the pilgrimage season. (source)

CAPITAL MARKETS - AmIslamic launches ASEAN Equity fund - focus also Indonesia

Hot on the heels of launching its Asia-Pacific fund last month, AmIslamic Funds Management, the Shari'ah-compliant investment subsidiary of Malaysia's AmBank Group, has launched the AmASEAN Equity fund. 

The new fund will target medium- to long-term capital growth by investing in a portfolio of equities in the ASEAN markets with specific focus on the markets of Indonesia, Malaysia, Singapore, Philippines and Thailand, known as the ASEAN 5. (source)

HALAL - 'Best for Indonesia, Brunei, M'sia to have one halal standard'

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GETTING food exporting Muslim countries in Southeast Asia to agree on a single halal standard will ultimately harmonise exports within Asean and ease market access into the European Union (EU), an authority on food and agriculture said yesterday.

An acceptable standard agreed among countries like Brunei, Malaysia and Indonesia combined with reciprocity with Europe's substantial Muslim population will pave the way for more halal products from the region to get onto supermarket shelves in the continent, said David Knight, chairman of Food and Agriculture under the British Chamber of Commerce in Indonesia. (full story)

HALAL - Foreign agencies using MUI halal standards

Jakarta (ANTARA News) - At least 41 foreign food certification agencies have set their halal food standards based on inputs from the Indonesian Ulema Council (MUI)`s Food, Drug and Cosmetics Research Institute (LPPOM), an MUI official said,

Among the 41 agencies were those of a number of ASEAN member countries, Canada, England, Holland, Belgium, Turkey, Japan and the US, Lukmanul Hakim, the LPPOM head, said here Thursday.