PricewaterhouseCoopers Bermuda partner Colm Homan is confident that Shariah finance business between Bahrain and Bermuda can be up and running within 12 months. His firm recently carried out a study into the potential for Islamic finance in Bermuda and concluded that the market for Shariah-compliant products was very good. This begs the question: Why introduce […]
Ithmaar Bank in Bahrain was rumored to be experiencing a conflict between its Shariah advisory board and its conventional line of business, as detailed below: “Ithmaar Bank is fully sharia-compliant and has, in this regard, the full support of its independent Sharia board as well as the Central Bank of Bahrain, a statement said. The […]
The central banks of Bahrain and the United Arab Emirates have called for “reform” of Shariah-Compliant Finance. But their idea of reform simply means more coordination and industry-wide standards by Shariah scholars (men like Sheikh al-Qaradawi and Mufti Usmani), not true reform. No where in their call for reform will you find increased transparency and […]
Though the article linked below tries to spin the news as favorable, ABC Islamic Bank’s net profit for the first quarter plunged to $1.8 million this year, down from $5.6 million last year. Net income was down substantially as well. It is typical of news media in Islamic nations to attempt to make bad news […]
For many years, banks in the Middle East, the Arab world in particular, conducted business in a conventional fashion, with no thought of compliance with Shariah law. But in recent years, financial jihadists have promoted Shariah immensely and more and more banks have moved to Shariah compliance. This is a negative development because it helps […]
Bahrain Islamic Bank recently held its annual “general assembly” meeting at which, among other things, it appropriated zakat funds. Zakat, for those who are not regular SFW readers, is a form of tithing in Islam. Zakat is also a huge concern when it comes to Shariah Finance and Shariah Banking because at least two of […]
Note how the experience of IIB flies in the face of all the claims from the financial jihadists that they offer safe haven from economic and financial crisis… Last year was a difficult year for the world economy and financial markets, and global financial crisis hit Bahrain-based Shariah-compliant International Investment Bank (IIB) also as it […]
Bahrain-based ABC Islamic Bank has posted a net profit of $10.1 million for 2009 compared to $25.6 million for 2008, a sharp decline. http://www.tradearabia.com/news/newsdetails.asp?Sn=BANK&artid=175514
Islamic “megabank” to launch
The creation of a planned Islamic investment megabank is in ‘fairly advanced stages’ and it will likely be launched in the next six to 12 months, an executive at a firm advising on the project said on Thursday. A plan to form the world’s largest sharia-compliant lender – which is being promoted by the chairman […]
Deloitte & Touche to establish Shariah Finance center in Bahrain
Consulting giant Deloitte has opted to site its new Islamic Finance Knowledge Centre (IFKC) in Bahrain. http://www.arabianbusiness.com/581062-deloitte-to-base-islamic-finance-centre-in-bahrain
AAOIFI moves to seize control of Shariah Finance
In a move that is being hailed by the Western financial media as a positive development, the Accounting and Auditing Organisation for Islamic Financial Institutions (AAOIFI) has issued a series of standards and procedures for Shariah-Compliance. http://www.reuters.com/article/idUSLDE60J0WF20100120?rpc=401&feedType=RSS&feedName=rbssFinancialServicesAndRealEstateNews&rpc=401 It is hoped that the AAOIFI will “harmonize” standards across the industry. If only Western journalists had bothered […]
Financial Jihadists have their sights set firmly on Sri Lanka
Claiming (fraudulently we might add) that “Islamic finance” is insulated from recession, one of Bahrain’s leading financiers has traveled to Sri Lanka to plant the flag of Shariah in its financial system… http://www.dailymirror.lk/DM_BLOG/Sections/frmNewsDetailView.aspx?ARTID=72487
Linked below is an article by a man named Arthur MacDonald in which he repeats the myth that “moral” Shariah-Compliant Finance has provided protection against the economic crisis. We regret to inform Mr. MacDonald, but Shariah Finance is neither moral, nor a protector against economic crisis. Consider that the world’s largest Shariah-Compliant financial institutions are […]
Shariah Finance industry holds award dinner
Though it is not the main theme of the article linked below, a major awards dinner was held in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia on Tuesday night and we thought the listing of recipients was interesting in that it provides insight into the major players working to promote Shariah through its financial arm. It is always also […]
Increased provisioning for bad loans and a decline in income from investments have led Bahrain Islamic Bank into a quarterly loss. Bahrain’s biggest Islamic retail bank by market value said on Wednesday provisions for impairments in the third quarter increased more than threefold to 2 million Bahraini dinars ($5.31 million) from 600,000 dinars in the […]
Unicorn Investment Bank is aptly named. Just as unicorns are a myth, the idea that there is anything “Western” about Shariah is a myth as well… http://www.thepeninsulaqatar.com/Display_news.asp?section=Business_News&subsection=market+news&month=October2009&file=Business_News200910087929.xml
Shariah Banking Expands in South Africa
Al Baraka bank now has six branches and four corporate offices in South Africa serving 40,000 customers. It is a subsidiary of Al Baraka banking group of Bahrain. Perhaps not coincidentally, South Africa has developed problems with Jihadist groups in recent years, though this has not received much attention in Western media, possibly because of […]
The Central Bank of Bahrain has announced the publication and distribution of a Japanese version of its Islamic Banking & Finance in the Kingdom of Bahrain. It was initially published in 2002 and used as a reference for many influential bankers, investors and professors interested in the field of Islamic finance. A total of 6,000 […]
The head of the Union of Arab Banks likes to tell stories. Fictional stories. He is the latest in a long line of Islamists who have been spreading propaganda about “Islamic finance” being immune to the impact of the current global economic downturn. Adnan Yousef claimed in a recent speech that the global financial crisis […]
One of the bogus tenants of Shariah-Compliant Finance is the supposed rule that forbids investing in companies that produce weaponry. We know from the Iranian experience that this ban only applies to companies that sell weaponry to the West, and not to companies that sell weaponry to Islamic nations, though this is never mentioned in […]
More Spin on Islamic Bank Earnings
If you don’t like to feel dizzy, don’t read the story at the link below, because it is the clumsiest example of news spin that we’ve ever seen. For a few months now, we’ve periodically been pointing out that Islamic (read Shariah-Compliant) banks have turned in disappointing earnings results. All the while, promoters of Shariah-Compliant […]
Former National Australia Bank executive Ahmed Fahour is aiming to build the world’s first global Islamic investment bank following his appointment to the Middle Eastern bank Gulf Finance House. The Lebanese-born Australian will take charge of the Bahrain-based bank next month, looking to offer oil rich Gulf states with investment opportunities ranging from infrastructure and […]
Bahrain Islamic Bank posted a loss in Q2 in the wake of defaults by two Saudi companies… http://business.maktoob.com/20090000007764/Bahrain_Islamic_swings_into_loss/Article.htm
Adnan Yousif: The Godfather of Global Shariah-Compliant Finance
Most of us in the West never heard of Adnan Yousif, but we probably should, because he has been named as a driving force behind the global spread of Shariah-Compliant Finance in a fluff piece published overnight on The Economist web site. Yousif is important enough for The Economist to […]
Shariah-Compliant Finance as a Safe Haven: Myth and Reality
Promoters of Shariah-Compliant Finance routinely violate the trust of investors when they proclaim that investing according to shariah principles has provided a safe haven from the recent and current financial crisis. Could any other sector get away with such lies? The lies emanate from the entire range of shariah practitioners, from individual investors themselves all […]
Reuters has a revealing article this morning which characterizes the spread of Shariah-Compliant Finance through quasi-official bodies headed by tyrannical regimes in Islamic nations. I’ll provide a quote that explains the gist of the article before I embark upon a deconstruction of the organization it came from: “Central banks are increasingly realizing they have to […]
Islamic markets tumble, Dubai floats conventional bond
Despite all the sunshine being thrown about by promoters of Shariah-Compliant Finance in the West, the so-called “insulated” Islamic markets are tumbling in the Middle East. Monarchies in the Gulf have had to resort to injecting capital into their banking systems to prevent a crisis. This was done in Abu Dhabi and Dubai appears set […]
Report: Western banks divesting their Shariah-Compliant units
At a time when promoters of Shariah-Compliant Finance are spreading propaganda that Shariah is the salvation from the financial crisis, Western firms are starting to unload their Shariah-Compliant units. Both Barclays and Citi have decided to do so. The idea that Shariah provides any safety net flies in the face of reality, as evidenced by […]
Seera Investment Bank acquires UK company MANAMA: Seera Investment Bank has successfully concluded the acquisition of UK-based BWA Water Additives.Following the successful completion of its leveraged buying, a team of senior management of Seera, a Sharia-compliant Bahrain-based investment bank, concluded a visit to the company’s headquarters in Manchester. A number of high-level meetings were held […]
In Bahrain, veiled models preferred Commercial TV managers turn to local talentWould you buy face cream from these “models”? By BRYAN PEARSON BAGHDAD — Veiled means added value in Bahrain, according to commercial TV managers. “Veiled women are preferred to nonveiled ones because they reflect the reality in the Gulf,” Ali Bahr, commercial development […]
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