WORLD - FINANCE - IIFM and ISDA Launch Mubadalatul Arbaah (MA) Profit Rate Swap (PRS) Product Standard

www.isda.org - BAHRAIN, Tuesday, March 27, 2012 – The International Islamic Financial Market (IIFM) and the International Swaps and Derivatives Association, Inc. (ISDA) are pleased to announce the launch of the ISDA/IIFM Mubadalatul Arbaah (Profit Rate Swap) product standard to be used for Islamic hedging purposes.

The Mubadalatul Arbaah (MA) standard follows on from the “ISDA/IIFM Tahawwut (Hedging) Master Agreement” and provides the industry with a framework for Islamic risk mitigation. The launch of the Tahawwut Master Agreement as the template for Shari’ah-compliant risk management was officially announced at a press conference hosted by Central Bank of Bahrain in March 2010. (source)

IDB - FINANCE - IDB urged to make trade financing more competitive

Behind the resolutions, the statements and the rhetoric of the Board of Governors of the Islamic Development Bank (IDB) at the recent 36th Annual Meeting which was held in Jeddah on June 29-30, were some commendable suggestions from member countries aimed at speeding up the efficiency and effectiveness of the bank. (source)

WORLD - REPORT - Malaysia still largest domestic sukuk issuer

LABUAN:Malaysia remains the largest issuer of domestic sukuk at 72 per cent by value with the balance split between a number of other issuers such as Sudan, Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates (UAE), Bahrain, Brunei, Pakistan and Indonesia.(source)

BANKING - Bank Indonesia hosts IIFM's 23rd Board Meeting & Industry Seminar

Jakarta, Indonesia - 23 December, 2010 - The 23^rd Board of Directors meeting of the IIFM was hosted last week by Bank Indonesia at their offices in Jakarta. The meeting was attended by senior representatives from Bank Indonesia, Central Bank of Bahrain, , Labuan Financial Services Authority (Malaysia), Ministry of Finance (Brunei Darussalam), Islamic Development Bank, State Bank of Pakistan, Bank Islam Malaysia Berhad, Credit Agricole CIB, Standard Chartered Saadiq and the National Bank of Kuwait (Bahrain).

CAPITAL MARKETS - Shariah-Compliant Hedging Derivatives Start in Malaysia: Islamic Finance

Standard Chartered Plc and Bank Islam Malaysia Bhd. plan to offer Shariah-compliant derivatives in Malaysia that will allow investors to hedge against interest rates and commodity prices.

Standard Chartered, the U.K. bank that earns most of its profit from emerging markets, will begin selling contracts in the first quarter that provide protection from fluctuations in the cost of items such as rice and oil, according to an e-mailed reply to questions yesterday. Bank Islam Malaysia, the country’s oldest Islamic lender, will offer swaps that allow two parties to exchange different forms of payments from an underlying asset.

BANKING - Sharia banks may get hedge funding tool next year

Member countries of the International Islamic Financial Market (IIFM) may soon enjoy a hedging facility to reduce risks of financial transactions, officials say.

The IIFM’s Board of Directors agreed on Monday to implement a hedging facility for the sharia banking industry in the first half of next year amid global currency concerns.

Bank Indonesia’s director for sharia banking, Mulya Siregar, said that IIFM member countries would sign a master agreement, called a tahawwut agreement, to accommodate the hedging facility.

LEGAL - 'Islamic finance industry is under regulated'

RIYADH: The total assets of Islamic finance sector in the six-nation Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) countries, which exceed $600 billion, have prompted the calls for regulating the Islamic finance industry and for imparting more training and skills to professionals working in this area. This was one of the findings of a major survey conducted by Deloitte's Islamic Finance Knowledge Center (IFKC), which was shared by Deloitte's experts, Tuesday.

SUKUK - IIFM - A study on Sukuk issuances in Indonesia

I did happen to stumble upon this new publication of IIFM - International Islamic Financial Markets from Bahrain : A Study on Sukuk Issuances in Indonesia  (Aug 2010).

The 16-page document gives a brief analysis of the global Sukuk markets early 2010 and the Indonesian Sukuk issuances.

SUKUK - Repos for Sukuk Eyed as Shariah Market Grows: Islamic Finance

Aug. 17 (Bloomberg) -- The International Islamic Financial Market, founded by the central banks of Bahrain, Indonesia and Malaysia, plans to create Shariah-compliant repurchase agreements to help Islamic banks manage funds and boost trading.

The IIFM, a Bahrain-based standards-setting body for Islamic markets, wants to introduce repos that don’t violate the religion’s ban on interest. It has proposed allowing third parties to act as intermediaries between buyers and sellers of sukuk used as collateral for short-term funds.