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Sunday, January 2, 2011

Fwd: [bangla-vision] Fw: IDB’s USD500 million Sukuk Accorded EMAS Status



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From: Abu Zahrin Abu Bakar <abuzahrinabubakar@yahoo.com>
Date: Sun, Jan 2, 2011 at 9:34 AM
Subject: [bangla-vision] Fw: IDB's USD500 million Sukuk Accorded EMAS Status
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----- Forwarded Message ----
From: MIFC <mifc@bnm.gov.my>
To: abuzahrinabubakar@yahoo.com
Sent: Mon, December 27, 2010 12:50:49 PM
Subject: IDB's USD500 million Sukuk Accorded EMAS Status

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NEWS IN BRIEF

Dr. Zeti Appointed First Chairperson of IILM; Mahmoud AbuShamma Appointed its First CEO
Dr. Zeti Akhtar Aziz, Governor of Bank Negara Malaysia, has been appointed as the first Chairperson of the Governing Board and the Board's Executive Committee of the Kuala Lumpur-based International Islamic Liquidity Management Corporation (IILM) which was established in October 2010 by 14 founding shareholders (12 central banks or monetary authorities, and two multilateral institutions). At the same time Yves Mersch, Governor of the Central Bank of Luxembourg, was appointed as the Deputy Chairperson.

The Governing Board also appointed Mahmoud AbuShamma as the inaugural Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of IILM for a three-year tenure effective 1 February 2011. Prior to his appointment, Mr. Mahmoud served as the Global Head of HSBC Amanah Coverage at HSBC Bank Middle East Limited in Dubai where he was responsible for critical relationships globally, including with Governments, high net worth individuals and top corporate clients. He was also instrumental in establishing the HSBC Amanah Syariah unit in Indonesia, and served as its Head from 2003 to 2010.

Mr. Mahmoud's mandate is to establish the international entity to enable it to issue short-term Shariah-compliant financial instruments, with ratings of no less than 'AAA'/ 'AA', in major reserve currencies, develop a platform to enhance cross-border Islamic liquidity management activities, as well as foster regional and international co-operation in building robust liquidity management infrastructures. He will report to the IILM's Governing Board which will set the strategic policy direction, and to the Board Executive Committee for its general conduct of operations.

The Governing Board also appointed the Shariah Committee of IILM whose members will serve for a three-year tenure and comprises Dr. Ahmed Ali Abdalla Hamad; Cecep Maskanul Hakim; Dr. Mohamed Ali Elgari; Dr. Mohd Daud Bakar; Dr. Umar Bashir Aliyu; and Dr. Waleed Bin Hady Al Mullah.
 
Dr. Zeti Honoured with Lifetime Achievement Award
The 5th Annual Islamic Business & Finance Awards held in Dubai on 21 December 2010, which was attended by 300 regional and global industry professionals saw 30 accolades being given out to recognize the achievements among top Islamic bankers, financiers and Islamic banking and finance institutions. Institutional and individual winners were drawn from the GCC region, United Kingdom, USA, Malaysia, Luxembourg, and Sudan.

Dr. Zeti Akhtar Aziz, Governor of the Central Bank of Malaysia was recognized with the 'Lifetime Achievement Award'. "The growing trend of the global Islamic finance industry is reflected in the high level of competition for these awards. We are pleased to see the development in this sector and are proud in honouring the top achievers within the industry," says Dominic De Sousa, Chairman of CPI Financial. The individual prizes were awarded to finance professionals whose outstanding contributions have led to the exceptional growth of this sector, even during one of the most challenging periods in the history of banking and finance.

Other notable achievements include 'Best Islamic Bank' which went to Abu Dhabi Islamic Bank; 'Outstanding Contribution Award' which went to Prof. Rifaat Ahmed Abdel Karim, Secretary General of IFSB, from Sudan; 'Islamic Banker of the Year' which was Tirad M. Mahmoud, Chief Executive Officer of Abu Dhabi Islamic Bank; and 'Best Commercial Bank' which went to CIMB Islamic, Malaysia.
 
PM Najib Emphasises ASEAN Offers Unique Opportunities in Islamic Finance
Malaysian Prime Minister Najib Razak, in his keynote speech at the 7th ASEAN Finance Ministers' Investors Seminar (AFMIS) held in Kuala Lumpur on 30 November 2010, stressed that the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) has a clear early mover advantage in Islamic finance, that "As the global community embraces Islamic finance as an alternative financial model, ASEAN offers unique opportunities for new Islamic finance instruments and fund management businesses. Big international fund managers like Saturna and Franklin Templeton have begun offering Islamic financial services out of Malaysia. We also see great potential for ASEAN as the gateway to tap Islamic investment funds from across the Middle East."
 
IIUM Signs MoU with Path Solutions
The Institute of Islamic Banking and Finance (IIiBF) of the International Islamic University Malaysia (IIUM) signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with Kuwait-based Path Solutions, the banking software solutions provider, in November 2010, whereby Islamic banking technology simulation will be used for educational and training purposes.

IIiBF, which was established in 2004, has developed into a prominent institution dedicated to providing education and research in Islamic banking and finance.

"This strategic collaboration with Path Solutions will significantly benefit the Institute of Islamic Banking and Finance with an Islamic banking system that will allow scholars to work on real simulations and practice the knowledge acquired from courses in Islamic banking and finance. I am confident that through our combined efforts, we can make an important step forward towards our common goals in taking Islamic banking to a new standard of excellence", explained Prof. Dr. Mohd Azmi Omar, Dean of IIUM.

Under the terms of the MoU, IIiBF will also provide Path Solutions' community of users with specialized training in Islamic finance and other Shariah advisory services.

"This groundbreaking collaborative partnership reaffirms our commitment to developing and promoting Islamic finance in South-East Asia and particularly in Malaysia by combining our efforts to share knowledge, innovations and best practices for the benefit of the Islamic banking community", said Mohammed Kateeb, Chairman & CEO of Path Solutions.
 
 
 
DID YOU KNOW
Did You Know that Malaysia has one of the most diverse professional services community for Islamic finance business in Asia which includes the legal, audit, accountancy, tax, research houses and Shariah advisory companies?
 
 
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Connecting Business with Islamic Finance
 
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IDB's USD500 million Sukuk Accorded EMAS Status

On 1 December 2010, Bank Negara Malaysia (BNM) officially accorded the 'EMAS' (Gold) status to the USD500 million Islamic Trust Certificates issuance by the Islamic Development Bank (IDB) which was closed in October 2010, and listed on Bursa Malaysia on the same day.

The listing ceremony was attended by Dr. Zeti Akhtar Aziz, Governor of BNM; Zarinah Anwar, Chairman of the Securities Commission Malaysia; Dr. Ahmed Mohamed Ali, President of IDB; Muhammad Dzaiddin Haji Abdullah, Chairman of Bursa Malaysia; Dr. Syed Muhamad Syed Abdul Kadir, Chairman of CIMB Islamic; and Badlisyah Abdul Ghani, Executive Director and Chief Executive Officer, CIMB Islamic.

This tranche is the latest in IDB's USD3.5 billion multi-currency Islamic Trust Certificates programme, which was upsized in August from USD1.5 billion. The programme was established by IDB through a special purpose vehicle, IDB Trust Services Limited, and is rated Aaa/AAA/AAA by Moody's, S&P and Fitch respectively.

'EMAS' is Malaysia's designation accorded to foreign currency denominated bonds and sukuk originating from Malaysia in the global capital market. 'Emas' is the Malay word for gold which symbolizes universal value and security.

IDB is the first multilateral development bank (MDB) to issue and list its foreign currency sukuk programme in Malaysia. Sukuk issuance originating in Malaysia accounts for 62 percent of total global sukuk outstanding. Other EMAS designated sukuk issuances in Malaysia in the last two years include the Petronas USD1.5 billion sukuk; Government of Malaysia USD1.25 billion sukuk; Nomura USD100 million sukuk and the Khazanah SGD1.5 billion sukuk.

This latest IDB 5-year, fixed rate USD500 million Trust Certificates tranche was priced at par with a 1.775 percent semi-annual profit rate to yield 40 basis points (bps) over the benchmark midswap rate. Investors distribution was diverse with 54 percent of the Trust Certificates allocated to Middle East investors, 34 percent to Asian investors and 12 percent to European investors.

CIMB of Malaysia, Citigroup, HSBC and Standard Chartered Bank acted as joint lead managers and joint book-runners, and NCB Capital of Saudi Arabia acted as co-lead manager for this transaction. The success of IDB's transaction was underpinned by a comprehensive international road show covering Asia, the Middle East and Europe.

CIMB Islamic advised the IDB on the listing of its USD3.5 billion Trust Certificate Issuance Programme on Bursa Malaysia, marking the first multilateral development bank to list its foreign currency sukuk programme on the Exchange under an Exempt Regime. The Programme is also listed on the London Stock Exchange.

The proceeds from the five-year USD500 million tranche will be used for general corporate purposes including financing projects in IDB member countries.

CIMB Islamic Chairman, Dr. Syed, stressed that "the listing of sukuk on Bursa Malaysia is an important step, if not a prerequisite, for any issuer seeking to increase its profile and acceptance among global investors. In choosing to issue its recent sukuk in Malaysia under the MIFC initiative and to list it on Bursa Malaysia, the IDB is clearly acknowledging and endorsing the maturity of the Malaysian Islamic capital market."

Yusli Mohamed Yusoff, Chief Executive Officer of Bursa Malaysia is confident that "the listing of IDB's second sukuk programme on Bursa Malaysia within a short span of six months indicates their strong confidence in our Islamic capital market. This certainly enhances Malaysia's leading position as the global Islamic financial hub whilst demonstrating the benefits that our market can offer."

With this listing, Bursa Malaysia's total sukuk listings amount to USD27.6 billion, comprising 19 sukuk listed by 17 issuers, three of which are foreign issuers.

Emergence of New Agenda for Islamic Finance with Asia as Growth Engine

International auditing firm and consultancy, KPMG International in conjunction with its various country offices and coordinated by KPMG in Malaysia recently published a report titled 'Islamic Finance: The New Agenda'. The main conclusions were that the doctrinal phase of the Islamic financial industry over the last decade, which was underpinned by the debate of Shariah-compliant versus Shariah-based products, is effectively over; and a new agenda is emerging for Islamic finance, and that Asia and the GCC will continue to dominate in the short to medium term, particularly Malaysia and Saudi Arabia. Asia will continue to be the engine of growth, and Islamic finance is expected to have a prominent role in the 'Asia growth story' going forward.

KPMG interviewed several Islamic bankers at the CEO level, who stressed that the main requirement for customers is that a product meets their requirements, in terms of price, return and transparency of risk, and Shariah-compliance. These executives included Harris Irfan, Head of Islamic Products, Barclays; Badlisyah Abdul Ghani, Executive Director/CEO of CIMB Islamic; Mukhtar Hussain, Global CEO of HSBC Amanah and Chairman of HSBC Amanah Malaysia; Ali Zaidi, Managing Director/Head of Islamic Markets, Maybank Investment Bank; and Afaq Khan, CEO of Standard Chartered Saadiq.

"The Islamic finance industry has spent over a decade debating various issues of principle that the global credit crunch proved to be increasingly irrelevant. Replacing them is a new context that has at its centre the continued improvement of governance, better asset and liability management and greater product suitability and transparency. It is important for Islamic finance to progress in the right direction as it and conventional finance recover from the global crisis," stressed the authors.

Not surprisingly, for Afaq Khan, CEO of Standard Chartered Saadiq, the shake-out resulting from the global financial crisis has been good for the Islamic finance market.

The Islamic financial industry, said the report, is addressing the credit and liquidity restraints that linger following the crisis, as well as focusing on its key business activities; principally how best to provide customers with suitable products which meet their specific requirements and which offer the return, transparency and ethical structure demanded. It is also re-examining the wider approach to asset and liability management given the lessons learned during the crisis.

Similarly, while the issue of standardization of documentation and practices are still pertinent to industry growth, differences in Shariah interpretations in different regions are becoming less significant, although some of these variances still pose issues relating to liquidity management in terms of acceptable instruments. According to Harris Irfan, Head of Islamic Products, Barclays, scholars are definitely examining documentation much more carefully, and scrutiny is much higher than it used to be.

KPMG confirms that although Islamic finance was by no means unscathed by the global financial crisis, it had a less severe impact than elsewhere. However the economic impact did create a serious shock and a number of Islamic financial institutions came close to collapse, with the result many Islamic banks, like conventional banks, have had to respond by selling and restructuring assets and liabilities.

Ali Zaidi, Managing Director and Head of Islamic Products at Maybank Investment Bank, urged the sector "to start forging a different route. And that route is being shown to us by global regulators, who are saying banking has got to be different in the future."

The new agenda for Islamic finance is underpinned by the fact that the process of standardization has been helped by the emergence of a general consensus within the industry about the nature and principles of the products being offered; Shariah advisory is dominated by a limited cadre of leading scholars, with only an elite small number possessing the detailed theological knowledge as well as an understanding of modern financial instruments; the existence of this small elite is leading to a broad commonality of Shariah interpretations across different markets; and that there are no major regulatory barriers to the implementation of Islamic finance in existing markets.

Feedback from KPMG member firms around the world shows that meeting the needs of the customers will be crucial going forward. "Islamic finance needs to better match liability providers with asset seekers, to include investment and financing within the holistic customer choice range," the report observed.

Many of the above bankers felt the true test of the resilience of the Islamic financial system would be in relation to the liquidity deficiency resulting from the financial crisis. The problem is that the sector in the past relied too heavily on replicated debt-based conventional structures which perhaps hindered the practice of managing liquidity risk by matching asset and liability portfolios. For example, financial institutions which had large exposures to private equity, particularly in some emerging markets, were hard hit.

In terms of geographic market development, the existing developed markets in Islamic finance will continue to dominate especially those in the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) and Asia, particularly Saudi Arabia and Malaysia respectively. Malaysia's spectacular success in Islamic finance is underpinned by strong government support and a systemic approach to the industry. "No other country has the legislative, regulatory, legal and Shariah framework of Malaysia", stressed Badlisyah Abdul Ghani, CEO of CIMB Islamic.

The projection is for an explosion of growth in Islamic finance in Saudi Arabia; Indonesia will eventually follow Malaysia's lead; Africa as a new frontier market; Central Asia also offering good opportunities; and Turkey and parts of China offering major potential for growth. Outside of the Muslim world, many countries in Europe, the UK being at the forefront, will continue to look into Islamic finance.

The report stresses that although new entrants to the market will continue to emerge, although the trend will be towards the consolidation of existing institutions in their home markets. As the market matures, issues such as strategic positioning, image and brand management, and the branding of Islamic financial institutions in conjunction with customer expectations, will be complex challenges, perhaps more so in Malaysia.

With Islamic finance becoming increasingly attractive to a wider spectrum of consumers, particularly following the global financial crisis, the industry's biggest opportunity from this movement is "only if the industry offers greater choice to consumers," according to Mukhtar Hussain, Global Head of HSBC Amanah.

BNM Calls for Internationally Facilitative Legal Framework for Islamic Finance

BNM Deputy Governor, Muhammad bin Ibrahim, in his keynote address to the ISRA-IIBI 2nd Annual International Workshop 2010, held in November at Thomson Reuters, London, called for greater global dialogue to contribute to the development of a legal framework for Islamic finance that would be internationally facilitative.

The Workshop is organised by the International Shariah Research Academy for Islamic Finance (ISRA), the Institute of Islamic Banking and Insurance (IIBI) and Thomson Reuters, and was also attended by Alderman Nick Anstee, Lord Mayor of the City of London. The theme of this year's event was 'The Polemics of Governing Law in Islamic Finance: Recent Developments and the Way Forward'.

The rapid growth of Islamic finance globally is underpinned by several initiatives to strengthen its international financial infrastructure through the recent establishment of the Islamic Financial Services Forum (IFSF), a platform for cross-border engagement among regulators to achieve financial stability in the Islamic financial system. Another important recent development was the establishment of the International Islamic Liquidity Management Corporation (IILM), an initiative for more efficient and effective management of liquidity across borders for Islamic financial institutions.

A positive development, said the Deputy Governor, is the increasing number of jurisdictions now taking steps to modify their legislations to cater for Islamic finance. They include Ireland, France, Australia, Jordan and Lebanon. "Given the importance of developing a supportive legal system, these global moves augur well for sustainable global growth of Islamic finance," he added.

One of the key determinants for successful development of Islamic finance in any jurisdiction is the existence of a conducive legal framework. Jurisdictions that are able to quickly amend their legal framework have managed to achieve significant growth in Islamic finance. The basis for the legal framework is to have governing laws that enable the conduct of Islamic finance business and that puts it on a level playing field with conventional finance. However, this governing law should ideally also sanction the implicit statutory obligations for Shariah compliance.

According to Muhammad, the Central Bank of Malaysia Act 2009 explicitly codifies the duality of the Malaysian financial system which comprises the conventional financial system and the Islamic financial system. "This approach," he says, "has proven to be successful and critical in instilling public confidence in the Shariah integrity of the industry. Whilst enacting a separate governing law avoids the trap of confining the scope and operation of Islamic finance within the mould of conventional finance, this approach has proven in Malaysia to be the most efficient way possible to regulate Islamic finance."

Malaysia earlier this year also established a Law Harmonisation Committee with the main objectives to review existing Malaysian Islamic finance laws and to propose necessary amendments to give legal recognition to Islamic financial transactions under the law; and to develop Malaysian laws as the law of choice for international Islamic financial transactions.

As Islamic finance has its roots in Shariah and in conjunction with a supportive legal framework, it is equally important to have a robust Shariah governance framework, and a requirement for Islamic financial institutions to ensure their objectives and operations are in accordance to Shariah. In Malaysia, the integrity and credibility of the Shariah governance framework is fundamentally supported by the role of BNM's and the Securities Commission's (SC) Shariah Advisory Councils (SAC), which form the centralized referral body for the Islamic finance community, which also, by law, make up the apex Shariah authority in the country in Shariah matters relating to Islamic finance, where the SAC's rulings are binding on the courts and arbitrators.

In Islamic financial contracts, great importance is placed on contracts and the parties to a contract. This element has given rise to an effective adjudication system which gives customers, banks, and other stakeholders recourse to law. "An efficient and authoritative adjudication system," explained Muhammad, "helps create certainty and establishes the legitimacy of Islamic financial contracts. The ability of parties to enforce a contract is thus critical as it constitutes the core of maintaining public confidence. Therefore, there is a crucial need for a dispute settlement mechanism that is able and competent to dissect in a judicious manner Shariah matters in contracts, so that issues of dispute in Shariah interpretation could be resolved and enforced accordingly." In Malaysia, the adjudication purpose is augmented with a dedicated judge in the commercial division of the High Court to preside over litigations relating to Islamic banking and finance. The court's adjudication role in Islamic finance is reinforced by the support from the SAC in its capacity as a consultative body to the Malaysian judiciary system.

Under the law, the Central Bank of Malaysia Act 2009 prevails, if a question concerning a Shariah matter arises in any proceedings relating to Islamic financial business, where the court or the arbitrator shall take into consideration any published rulings of the SAC or refer the matter to the SAC for its ruling.

Together with the Central Bank of Malaysia Act 2009, this referral system, explained the Deputy Governor, preserves and enhances the sanctity of Shariah rulings and the consistency in the interpretation and application of Shariah principles in Islamic financial transactions. To further complement the court system, specific arbitration rules for Islamic banking and financial services have also been developed, enabling disputes for both domestic and international cases to be dealt with by the Kuala Lumpur Regional Centre for Arbitration (KLRCA).

Another important legal aspect in the conduct of Islamic finance is in ensuring good documentation of contracts underlying Islamic financial transactions, which is integral to Islamic finance as it provides the critical 'bridge' between Shariah and Islamic finance practices. Documentation must conform to Shariah in such a way that it enables the operationalisation of Shariah principles into legally enforceable Islamic finance contracts. This is crucial to avoid legal and reputational risks arising from the failure to faithfully reflect the principles of Shariah, which could undermine public confidence.

The move towards greater standardization in the legal documentation of Islamic financial transactions is also a major challenge.

SC Chairman Extols Prospects for Malaysia Islamic Capital Market

The Islamic fund management industry constitutes the fastest growing segment of Malaysia's Islamic capital market (ICM) with an annual compounded growth of more than 25 percent over the last 5 years. This was confirmed by Zarinah Anwar, Chairman of SC, in her keynote address at the International Shariah Investment Convention 2010 which was held on 1 December in Kuala Lumpur and organised by the SC, Bursa Malaysia and Amanie Business Solutions.

"The Islamic fund management segment has been fully liberalised with attractive tax incentives offered by the government. We now have 15 full-fledged Islamic fund managers operating in Malaysia including some of the biggest names in the international fund management industry. We have 152 Islamic unit trust funds with a total Net Asset Value of RM23.02 billion (USD7.1 billion)," she added.

In order to further develop Malaysia's Islamic fund management industry and to enable Malaysian investment products to be offered abroad and foreign products to be offered to Malaysian investors, the SC has actively pursued mutual recognition arrangements with other strategically important markets such as the Dubai Financial Services Authority, and the Securities and Futures Commission of Hong Kong. These agreements, according to the SC, help to widen the industry's distribution network and promote exchange of ideas to enhance product offerings, especially for funds meant for regional distribution.

Malaysia's Islamic finance offerings to international investors and issuers comprise Islamic banking, takaful, and the Islamic capital market which extends beyond a vibrant sukuk market. Malaysia, stressed Chairman Zarinah, is also fast becoming a centre for Islamic fund and wealth management services, and for international Islamic banking service; as well as a centre for Islamic finance education, training, consultancy and research. All these sectors are supported by facilitative policies and underpinned by clear and robust regulatory as well as Shariah governance frameworks.

Indeed these are exciting times for the Malaysian capital market, in particular for the Islamic capital market. The Islamic Development Bank (IDB) officially listed its USD500 million Islamic Trust Certificates issuance on Bursa Malaysia on 1 December 2010. According to the SC, between January to September 2010, over 55 percent of all bonds approved by the SC were sukuk. Malaysia still originates more than 60 percent of global sukuk outstanding. This has generated significant cross-border flows as funds are raised from beyond domestic financial markets and as investors diversify their portfolios into assets from other jurisdictions.

Similarly, with 961 listed companies, Bursa Malaysia, offers the widest and largest selection of companies in ASEAN. Currently, 88 percent of the securities listed on Bursa Malaysia make up 62 percent of total market capitalization and are Shariah-compliant.

A key aspect of Malaysia's regulatory approach is to ensure that investors in Malaysia's Islamic capital market receive the same degree of clarity, certainty and protection as investors in the conventional market. "We emphasise a common regulatory approach to regulating our Islamic capital market based on IOSCO's (International Organizations of Securities Commissions) objectives and principles of regulation. The requirements for disclosure, transparency and governance therefore apply equally to Islamic and conventional products, thus ensuring that an investor in an Islamic product receives the same legal and regulatory protection and recourse. We have to ensure that these products and services are also true to label and that trust in Islamic products is safeguarded to sustain the pace of developments for this sector," explained Chairman Zarinah.

Chairman Zarinah also reminded that Malaysia serves as a gateway to the rest of ASEAN, which has a potential market of some 600 million people and a combined GDP of more than USD1.8 trillion. In the first quarter of 2010, annual GDP growth rates in ASEAN countries ranged from 5.7 percent to 15.5 percent. ASEAN countries, she concluded, offer tremendous opportunities for those seeking Shariah-compliant investments, particularly through investments in sukuk from the region or in regional funds.

RAM Ratings Commends Malaysia's Robust and Thriving Islamic Capital Market

Malaysian rating agency, RAM Rating Services, sees the Malaysian Islamic capital market as being intelligently positioned within the evolving Islamic financial services industry, which in turn is a good example of how government and regulatory policies can combine with the commercial and community interests of the private sector to create a robust and thriving market.

RAM Ratings' Head of Islamic Ratings, Zakariya Othman, who was also a panel member at the 17th Annual World Islamic Banking Conference 2010 (WIBC), which was held in Manama, Bahrain in November, explained that Malaysia's dual banking model has achieved positive international recognition. "The findings of a survey by a GCC-owned research house show that Malaysia has a clear lead over other financial centres in terms of regulatory and legislative frameworks, infrastructure, range of products and services, risk management and audit as well as statistical information, marketing and education of Islamic finance," he added.

In his remarks on the legal constraints in Islamic finance cases, he emphasised the competency of the civil courts in hearing the cases; and the ability of the court to refer all issues pertaining to Islamic law, including Islamic banking, to a recognised body such as the Shariah Advisory Council (SAC) of BNM or SC.

The subject matter dealt with in the civil courts in Islamic finance cases is finance and not Islam. As such, Islamic finance cases can be submitted under the jurisdiction of the civil courts. However, he advised, the judge should have full knowledge of Shariah. In Malaysia the provisions of the new Central Bank of Malaysia Act 2009, which came into effect on 25 November 2009, makes it mandatory for the courts to refer rulings concerning Shariah matters in finance to the SAC of BNM.

On the management of sukuk defaults, Zakariya explained that defaults in Malaysia have received less criticism and scrutiny due to the country's robust supervisory structure, established governance and disclosure standards as well as the highly developed legal framework and court system; all of which provide clarity and consistency in the rules.

In conjunction with the WIBC 2010, RAM Ratings published a special edition of its Sukuk Focus, which delves into the metamorphosis of the Malaysian Islamic capital market, and elaborates on the latest innovation in sukuk structures, namely, Wakalah-based sukuk via commodity Murabahah. Read here.
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Palash Biswas
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