Interview with Eric Meyer , CEO of Shari'ah Capital

Meyer was an early pioneer in Islamic finance in the late 1990s, and broke new ground by developing the infrastructure for Shari'ah compliant fund-of-hedge funds. Assisted by prominent Shari'ah scholars, Meyer also devised the tools and screening methodology that led to the launch of Shari'ah-compliant long-short equity and market-neutral hedge funds. ... Read More

Moving From Economic Volatility to Stability Through Unity of the Economic System

The cause of the global financial crisis, both from the view of social ethics and banking, is that speculation has caused shortterm capital flows to experience extreme swings of volatility, while reducing the real value of productive assets. Under such adverse financial and economic information asymmetry, investors and consumers get discouraged from spending. The economy continues to underperform. Social malaise is the result. ... Read More

Q&A With Mark Smyth, Director of Failaka Advisors

Mark Smyth is Managing Director of Failaka Advisors, the first research and advisory firm to monitor advances in the field of Islamic investment funds. Failaka focuses on keeping up-to-date, objective and reliable data on the sector. Failaka also hosts the annual Failaka Islamic Fund Awards each spring in Dubai, recognizing the best-performing funds, fund families and managers. ... Read More

Pakistan, Afghanistan and Islamic Finance

On a recent trip to Pakistan, I was sitting in my hotel room in Islamabad when I was startled by a large boom and a rattling of the windows in my hotel room. As I switched on the television news, my concerns were confirmed, as coverage began of another suicide bombing in the nations capital. ... Read More

The Scoop on Sukuk

Modern Islamic finance has developed ways to allow interest income to be replaced with cash flows from wealth-generating investment activities and operations. One of the instruments that allows this is sukuk, commonly known as the Islamic bond. ... Read More

Leveraging Bancassurance as a Key Growth Channel for Takaful

The growth in recent years of the market for takaful (Shari'ah-compliant insurance) has been robust. Between 2005 and the end of 2007, global gross takaful contributions (excluding in Iran) posted a compound annual growth rate of 30%, according to the World Takaful Report published by Ernst & Young in April 2009. Total contributions expanded from $1.384 billion in 2004 to $3.364 billion at the end of 2007, according to the same source. Of this total, the GCC accounted for $2.046 billion and Sout... Read More

Bringing SWFs Toward Shari'ah Compliance

In recent years, it has become clear that sovereign wealth funds (SWFs) have grown in their significance and power in the global financial markets. The Muslim world in general and the Arab world in particular are very much at the centre of this development. Driven by a dramatic increase in income derived from oil and gas exports, they have the means to develop and maintain strongly capitalised investment funds that seek global investment opportunities at a time when Western financial markets are... Read More

Insights From the Milken Institute Global Conference

In April of this year, over 3,000 attendees and 500 thought-provoking panellists from around the world gathered in Los Angeles, California, USA, for the 12th annual Milken Institute Global Conference. Economic recovery was a major theme. Speakers included several Nobel Prize winners, top industry leaders, scientists and heads of state. There were over 100 panel sessions, including panels on Islamic finance, the Middle East and crude oil. ... Read More

Q&A With Jamal Hijres, CEO of Capinnova Investment Bank

Jamal Hijres is CEO of Capinnova Investment Bank, an independent provider of Shari'ah-compliant investment products and services for corporations, high net worth individuals, family businesses and government institutions, regionally and globally. ... Read More

UCITS and Investments Shari'ah-Compliant Investments

The term UCITS, which stands for Undertakings for Collective Investment in Transferable Securities, refers to pan- European investment schemes. UCITS are regulated, harmonised products that can be set up in any Member State of the European Union and then marketed throughout the EU. ... Read More

Achieving Growth in Takaful

I was the first Muslim to be appointed a member of the House of Lords by the Conservative Party. I am very active in the House of Lords and in fact, over the period of last year, I have spoken on 29 different subjects. I consider myself a British peer who is a Muslim. I have quoted the Holy Prophet (peace be upon him) and also referred to the Holy Quran in my speeches in the House of Lords.... Read More

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