A few years ago, Dubai World floated an Islamic bond (Sukuk) to acquire the British port company P&O. The results of that acquisition and the methodology became part of the subsequent default and bailout of Dubai World’s sukuk portfolio. What the article linked below alludes to without coming right out and saying it, is the […]
10 Sukuk Defaults at Year-End 2009
While it has received virtually zero coverage in the Western financial media, by researching Islamic blogs, we have come across a very interesting piece of information: there were 10 sukuk (Islamic bond) defaults at the end of 2009. We all know about the Dubai sukuk default, but there were evidently several others, including one involving […]
Dubai in retrospect: Don’t Blame Shariah!
The Dubai World default on sukuk, also known as “Islamic bonds,” was centered on financial products which were approved by Shariah scholars. Making investments Shariah-Compliant was supposed to protect investors from crisis and calamity. We heard and read such claims from financial jihadists over and over again after the Subprime collapse. But Shariah-Compliance not only […]
Shariah finance: The deadly Jihadist weapon with a dollar sign
It is highly appropriate that SFW end 2009 by sharing the latest work from one of the true heroes of the Western world in the fight against Shariah: David Yerushalmi. Mr. Yerushalmi’s essay in the Washington Examiner provides both a primer for those unfamiliar with the issue of Shariah Finance, as well as an update […]
BBC: Islamic Finance is a Dishonest Business Run by Dishonest People
The BBC has published an article by Mr. John Foster, who used to be editor of “Islamic Business & Finance” magazine. The topic of the article is described by its title: “How Sharia-Compliant is Islamic Banking?” But it is not really the topic which makes the article interesting. It is the details which make it […]
Dubai’s golden sands lose their luster
“Investors trapped by the financial storm in the United Arab Emirates are in unknown legal territory as they try to protect their billions.” (The Times, 10 December 2009) The Dubai default debacle demonstrates in stark detail how the lack of transparency and failure to disclose relevant facts make Shariah Finance risky. Long ago–decades ago–the rest […]
A Shameless, Shallow Advertorial for Shariah Finance from Oxford Analytica and Forbes.com
Malcom Forbes must be spinning in his grave. His namesake publication’s web site has published an article which basically promotes a financial and economic system which by its very nature seeks to replace capitalism and our free enterprise system: http://www.forbes.com/2009/12/10/islamic-finance-after-dubai-business-oxford-analytica-islamic-finance.html?feed=rss_business In fact, the article reads less like journalism and more like a press release from […]
Shariah finance suffers growing pains
The Financial Times actually wrote a fairly balanced story on Shariah finance for a change. In the story linked below, FT’s journalist points out that Shariah-compliant financial institutions have proven just as vulnerable to the economic downturn and financial crisis as conventional counterparts. This, of course, flies right in the face of the propaganda being […]
Law firms navigate foggy Dubai regulation as UK awaits asset sale
It seems there isn’t anything in Shariah to cover the restructuring of Dubai World’s debts and assets. This has British lawyers scrambling. Why is this a surprise? It would seem that the lawyers should have done proper due diligence on this matter BEFORE something like this occurred. But, then again, NO ONE in the West […]
The Contagion Spreads: Qatar Islamic Bank has $15 mln exposure to Dubai World
Qatar Islamic Bank has announced that it faces exposure in the evolving debacle emanating from Dubai. This is particularly bad news for this institution since, back in March, it was in serious enough trouble to have been bailed out by the regime in Qatar: https://shariahfinancewatch.org/2009/03/10/qatar-to-prop-up-its-banking-system/ $15 million doesn’t seem like a great deal of exposure, […]
Dubai Sheikh Calls International Investors A Bunch Of Suckers
After bilking international investors out of billions of dollars, Mohammed al-Maktoum blames the investors for Dubai’s financial troubles! In a way he is right. Many Western investors have been suckered in by Shariah Finance… http://www.businessinsider.com/dubai-sheikh-calls-international-investors-a-suckers-2009-12
Shariah Standing in the Way of Creditors Getting Paid in Dubai
Wealthy investors flocked to the “miracle” of Dubai in recent years. Some invested in Islamic bonds, better known as Sukuk. Sukuk are investments concocted to comply with Shariah law (though there is some debate even about that). Now, the very Shariah law under which Sukuk were designed could end up swindling creditors out of a […]
Dubai in meltdown
The bubble has burst in Dubai and the affliction is spreading to Western financial markets. Yesterday, US markets were closed for the Thanksgiving holiday, but other markets were open and shuddered: http://www.reuters.com/article/businessNews/idUSTRE5AN54C20091126?feedType=nl&feedName=usdai When reading the article linked just above, you may recognize the name “DP World.” This was the company that was scheming to take […]
TIMELINE-Defaults: Islamic finance in uncharted territory
The dirty underside of Shariah-Compliant Finance… http://www.reuters.com/article/bankruptcyNews/idUSKLR44503820091105?rpc=401
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