Dana Gas: Shariah Finance’s self-licking ice cream cone
by Christopher W. Holton As we reported earlier this month, the market for Shariah bonds is entering a new crisis as a result of an apparent default by Dana Gas: https://shariahfinancewatch.org/2017/06/15/more-fallout-from-the-dana-gas-sukuk-debacle/ https://shariahfinancewatch.org/2017/06/13/possible-shariah-finance-crisis-brewing-dana-gas-shariah-bonds-declared-unlawful/ Dana Gas is refusing to pay its creditors based on a new decision that its bond offering is no longer Shariah-compliant. This is […]
posted by Christopher W. Holton Here we see illustrated a real pitfall of Shariah compliant finance. Dana Gas of Abu Dhabi previously issues $700 million worth of Shariah bonds, also known as sukuk. Now, the firm is informing creditors that its sukuk are actually NOT shariah compliant and is proposing that they be traded for […]
The Islamists know that their financial position stemming from their oil wealth gives them great leverage over the West. Make no mistake, their intention is to apply that leverage whenever possible. This has been illustrated in an example of appeasement involving a Spanish soccer club. The soccer club Real Madrid has been compelled alter its world-famous logo […]
Abu Dhabi Islamic Bank is weighing whether to change its name as it targets more non-Muslim customers beyond its home market. The second-biggest Shariah-compliant bank in the United Arab Emirates may change to Abu Dhabi International Bank outside the nation to lure customers and help capture a market that’s about 200-times the size of Shariah banking. The bank […]
The CEO of Abu Dhabi Islamic Bank (ADIB), one of the largest Shariah compliant banks in the Gulf region, has said that Shariah banking is for everyone and offers an “ethical” banking alternative. The reason that Shariah banking is “ethical” is because it follows Shariah. Obviously, many people around the world would disagree with his assessment… http://www.gulfbankers.com/news-7107-islamic-banking-is-for-all-says-abu-dhabi-islamic-bank-ceo.html […]
Gulf Nations to Continue Shariah-Compliant Sukuk Push
HSBC Bank, perhaps the West’s most shameful pimp for Shariah-Compliant Finance, and a serial violator of Treasury regulations regarding Iran sanctions, is reporting that the market for Shariah-Compliant bonds (known as sukuk or Islamic bonds) is set to break records in 2013 thanks to the proliferation of issues from Gulf states. Mohammed Dawood of HSBC […]
Shariah-Compliant Finance Continues its Creep into Egypt
As anticipated, Shariah-Compliant Finance is making headway into the Egyptian financial system and economy. The latest evidence comes from the announcement that the Egyptian Electricity Ministry has inked its first ever Shariah-compliant financing contract with the help of National Bank for Development (NBD) and the Abu Dhabi Islamic Bank. The $110 million deal is the first […]
This issue isn’t strictly related to Shariah-Compliant Finance, but oil is what feeds Shariah Finance, Jihad and terrorism at the end of the day, so when a foreign entity funds a horrible film starring a notoriously anti-American Leftist like Matt Damon, it is worth a closer look. In this case, interests in OPEC, who earn […]
“Extremism” on the Rise in Zanzibar–Thanks to Saudi Money and Islamic Charities
The Financial Times has an important article about the influx of Salafi Islam in the island region of Tanzania known as Zanzibar. The article doesn’t draw any of the correct conclusions about what is happening there, but it contains enough clues to build a picture. For folks who don’t remember, Tanzania is one of the […]
Singapore investors flock to Abu Dhabi Bank Sukuk Offer
Here we have more confirmation that sukuk (Shariah-compliant bonds) are the weapon of choice in spreading Shariah finance around the world. Investors in Singapore are not known for their appetite for Shariah-compliant investments, but they seem to have warmed up to a sukuk issued by a major bank in the UAE… http://www.asiaone.com/A1Business/General%2BNews/Story/Mega%2Bsukuk%2Bissue%2Bcreates%2Bripples%2Bhere.html
Yesterday we reported that Dana Gas, the United Arab Emirates’ largest natural gas firm, was set to default later today on its $920 million sukuk, or Shariah-compliant bond. We cannot overemphasize the significance of this event. Sukuk have been controversial for some time based on several factors, but chiefly two: (1) Sukuk involve more fees […]
As we alluded to here on SFW back in April and January, the UAE’s Dana Gas, which already had a jaded record when it comes to investment ethics, is NOT going to pay off its creditors under the Shariah-compliant bond (sukuk) arrangement as the fawning financial media had reported. https://shariahfinancewatch.org/2012/04/30/uaes-dana-gas-looking-to-restructure-sukuk/ https://shariahfinancewatch.org/2012/01/31/another-sukuk-in-trouble/ There is no sugarcoating […]
Regular, long-time readers of SFW may recall a posting from almost exactly 2 years ago in which it was announced that an attorney who had specialized in Shariah Finance had been appointed as a White House fellow by President Barack Obama: https://shariahfinancewatch.org/2010/06/23/shariah-compliant-finance-specialist-joins-white-house-as-fellow/ The attorney in question is named Samar Ali. At the time she was […]
Yet another sukuk (Islamic bond) is in trouble. Like the Nakheel sukuk nearly 3 years ago, this issue is from a company in the United Arab Emirates, though this one is based out of Abu Dhabi, rather than Dubai. The company is Dana Gas, a major natural gas exploration and production company. There are questions as […]
Though the typically cheerleading article linked below doesn’t provide a detailed explanation (no surprise there), Moody’s has assigned a negative outlook on a major Islamic bond offering by a Shariah-compliant bank in the UAE, site of some of the most infamous sukuk defaults over the years… The outlook on FGB’s ratings is negative and therefore […]
Nakheel PJSC, the developer of palm- shaped islands off Dubai’s coast, is in preliminary talks with Nasdaq Dubai to list Islamic bonds. Nakheel was the debtor involved in the multi-billion dollar Dubai World Sukuk debacle in late 2009 in which creditors were asked to “stand still” and extend maturities on Islamic bonds (Sukuk). The Dubai […]
Abu Dhabi Islamic Bank (ADIB) has launched a new service to collect Zakat money through the bank’s ATMs. SFW readers may recall that zakat is a form of obligatory tithing in Islam–and one of the eight acceptable destinations for zakat under Shariah is to those who are “fighting in the way of allah.” This is […]
Egypt’s National Bank for Development (NBD) said its net loss widened 4.7 percent in the first half of the year. The bank reported a net loss of 203.4 million Egyptian pounds in the period from December 31, 2009 to June 30, 2010, up from a loss of 194.2 million pounds in the same period last […]
“Zakat Fund eyes to collect more than Dh72 million through this year’s campaign for generating annual Islamic charity (Zakat) as every Muslim is liable to allocate a particular amount of his annual savings as well as his asset for needy as per Shariah law.” “This years’ campaign would encourage the elderly to enhance the importance […]
Official zakat contributions doubled in the first half of the year to just more than Dh15 million, according to figures announced yesterday. Donations soared from less than Dh8m in the same period last year. The number of people contributing to the Zakat Fund, the government body that distributes alms revenue, also rose by 25 per cent. […]
The Ministry of Economy issued a law on the Islamic insurance system (Takaful) to regulate the work of Islamic insurance companies in the country. Under the new law, each insurance company should set up a Zakat fund in which zakat money would be deposited. http://gulfnews.com/business/general/law-to-regulate-islamic-insurance-1.647033
Sukuk “Alert”
Official and private entities in Jordan, Indonesia, Abu Dhabi, Malaysia, Saudi Arabia, Qatar, Dubai, Luxembourg, Sudan, Pakistan, Kazakhstan, Lebanon, Kuwait, Thailand, Islamic Development Bank and General Electric (GE) all are contemplating or planning Sukuk (Islamic bond) offerings in the near future… http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2010-06-22/jordan-indonesia-islamic-development-bank-plan-sales-islamic-bond-alert.html
This article is from MoneyLaundering.com. It tends to overplay the amount of cooperation that the US is getting from the UAE in our opinion, but it also contains some good information. These particular lines are revealing of Dubai’s status as a financial rogue nation: “…every major” Dubai real estate project “has been, in part, financed […]
Nearly nine years after the atrocity of the September 11th terrorist attack, the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey has opened bidding on One World Trade Center, and one of the highest bidders may have ties to the people responsible for the worst attack on U.S. soil. LINK to video fr0m Fox News: […]
Abu Dhabi Islamic Bank (ADIB), unveiled its new brand identity in line with its vision to become a top tier global Islamic financial services group and to deliver on its mission of providing “Islamic financial solutions for the Global community”. ADIB also introduces a new slogan that captures its commitment to provide world-class, ethical banking […]
Sharjah Islamic Bank Donates Millions to Zakat in UAE
Sharjah Islamic Bank (SIB) has donated AED 5 million to the Abu Dhabi Zakat Fund. While there is no published evidence that the Abu Dhabi Zakat Fund supports Jihadist terrorism, there are two facts which make the combination of Shariah-Compliant Finance and zakat particularly worrisome in this case: 1. Shariah law lists “those fighting for […]
Another UAE Sukuk Issuer Looks to “Restructure”
Over the past two years, there have been numerous defaults on Islamic bonds (better known as Sukuk). In fact, default rates on Sukuk are apparently higher than those of conventional bonds. This is likely due to the higher fees associated with Sukuk which are arrived at from a series of convoluted machinations designed to keep […]
Abu Dhabi Islamic Bank, the UAE second’s largest Shariah compliant bank, said yesterday that its board will consider allowing foreign investors to own stakes in the business. http://www.7days.ae/storydetails.php?id=90392%20%20%20%20&page=local%20news&title=ADIB%20mulls%20…
Moody’s Downgrades ANOTHER Sukuk Issuer
Last week reported that Moody’s Investor Services had downgraded a Kuwaiti firm that had issued Sukuk (Islamic Bonds). https://shariahfinancewatch.org/2010/01/27/another-sukuk-issuer-in-deep-trouble/ This weekend we were greeted with the news that Moody’s had downgraded yet another Sukuk issuer, this time a real estate development firm out of Abu Dhabi. If this is a harbinger of things to come, […]
Dubai Debts Prompt Review of Shariah Finance
SFW has long maintained–and pointed out–that Shariah-Compliant Finance is in now way immune to market and economic forces and thus cannot provide a safe haven in the event of economic or financial crisis. We point this out because so many financial jihadists routinely commit fraud by claiming that Shariah Finance is protected by the principles […]
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