The internet is rampant with reports of involvement by President Obama’s brother in the Muslim Brotherhood. Creeping Shariah blog has lots of details and further links on the topic. But of particular interest to SFW readers is the report from an Egyptian official that Barack Obama’s half brother is tied to investments of the Muslim […]
The article linked below from Bloomberg is about Alwaleed’s decision to sell off his jumbo jet, but the bigger story embedded here is his decision to refocus his fortune back home in Saudi Arabia and the Middle East, which almost certainly means Shariah-compliance… Prince Alwaleed Bin Talal Al Saud, the world’s 15th-richest person, sold his […]
One of the overt objectives of the financial jihadists has always been to capture the assets of non-Muslims in Shariah-compliant investments and accounts. They have used a wide variety of methods to do so. For instance, Sheikh DeLorenzo, who is on several major Shariah advisory boards in the USA and abroad, has advocated for not […]
Yesterday, SFW posted a disturbing article detailing Sheikh Yusuf al-Qardawi’s instructions on zakat (Islamic alms giving): https://shariahfinancewatch.org/2010/05/07/more-definitive-proof-of-zakat-funding-jihad/ Some readers may be skeptical that the views of a man living in Qatar, as expressed to another man living in Egypt, would be relevant in the United States. Not only are Qaradawi’s views relevant because he is […]
From time to time, readers will email us asking for a list of Shariah-Compliant companies. A complete version of such a list is extremely difficult to come by. Some of the better sources for such a listing would be the annual and semi-annual reports of the various Shariah-Compliant investment funds. These reports usually include portfolio […]
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 […]
Moves to plug the gap in Islamic finance carry risks
The Financial Times has published an article detailing some of the risks involved in Shariah-Compliant Finance. For instance, a new term has been developed for the financial world: “Shariah risk.” Shariah risk is the risk that a product that was previously believed to be shariah-compliant could be declared “un-Islamic” by a prominent shariah scholar. Basically, […]
Institutional Investor has published a celebratory article about “Islamic finance.” The article starts off by telling the truth, namely that the market for Islamic bonds dried up last year as a result of the economic crisis, but it only uses that as a set up for telling a story of how the future for Islamic […]
The Middle East North Africa Financial Network has just published a report on Shariah-Compliant Finance. The report (linked below) starts out with a promising title–“Shariah Compliant or Complaint”–but soon resorts to the same misinformation about the performance of Shariah-Compliant assets and vehicles for which the industry is now infamous. http://www.menafn.com/qn_news_story_s.asp?StoryId=1093254534 The MENAFN report glosses over […]
We have good news and bad news. First the bad news: the Shariah-Compliant Finance industry continues to grow worldwide. This is bad news for a variety of reasons, particularly these two: + The purpose of Shariah-Compliant Finance is to serve as “missionary work” to spread Shariah. So, when Shariah-Compliant Finance grows, Shariah spreads. Because Shariah […]
This week, CNN and Money magazine ran an article focusing on the role of faith in the personal finances of certain families. In the article which they published which deals with a Muslim family, we have discovered a whole slew of questions with regard to matters outside of personal finance which, not surprisingly, the lapdogs […]
Stress-testing Shariah-Compliant Finance
RGE Monitor has come up with an excellent analysis of the Shariah-Compliant Finance industry and has pretty much debunked all the misleading and flowery reports about Shariah-Compliance providing a safe haven against the current economic decline and financial downturn. It also reinforces another important aspect of Shariah-Compliant Finance that we’ve been writing about on SFW […]
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 […]
Shariah-Compliant Finance has gained a foothold in India and the story of this development illustrates the misleading nature of the industry. A new Shariah-Compliant fund was just launched. But look closely at its name: The Taurus Ethical Fund. Regular readers of SFW know that we have addressed this before. Proponents of Shariah-Compliant Finance are fond […]
On Tuesday, February 17, a celebration of “Islamic finance” will be held in the Ronald Reagan Building in Washington, D.C. Frankly, the thought of the enemy threat doctrine being promoted inside the walls of the building bearing the name of the greatest American president of our generation is certainly disheartening. The featured speaker is Sheikh […]
Just when we were glad that some in the media were taking a critical look at Shariah-Compliant Finance, Barron’s comes up with a real stinker–an article which amounts to a celebration and promotion of Shariah. As usual, this occurs without the article actually ever defining Shariah or identifying any of its characteristics. This probably should not […]
FINALLY…a critical article about Shariah-Compliant Finance…
…actually, it isn’t THAT great, but it’s better than most of the fluff pieces being produced on the subject these days. Foreign Policy has published a piece entitled Faith in the Market. They at least attempt a balanced view of Shariah-Compliant Finance, though they miss the most important points (which we will attempt to clear up here […]
AAOIFI head criticizes the chairman of AAOIFI Shari’ah board; Islamic Development Bank launches work team to monitor credit crisis The Islamic Development Bank is establishing a work team of experts to monitor the effect of the current financial crisis on the Islamic financial crisis. I think it is a good move and recognizes that, although […]
Stock markets across the Arab world experienced unprecedently sharp losses when trading began following the Id al-Fitr holiday earlier this week. The seven stock markets in the oil rich Gulf states shed around $150 billion of their capitalization in the course of the week. The market in Saudi Arabia sank by 7 percent. […]
With one triumphant deal, Nomura tells the world: Japan is back Despite the seemingly momentous upheaval of the past few weeks, Takumi Shibata, the Anglophile chief operating officer of Nomura Holdings, says that the world has not changed. However, he declares that ‘Japan is back’ Leo Lewis, Asia Business Correspondent Takumi Shibata’s speed in […]
By John Irish DUBAI, Aug 27 (Reuters) – Three Gulf Arab banks will launch a specialised bank to finance infrastructure projects, an agriculture firm and a hospitality fund as rapid growth in the Middle East and North Africa lures billions in new investment. The consortium aims to set up three new Islamic financial […]
Monday, 18 August 2008 Islamic banking is in its golden period of growth Dr Jasim Ali (Gulf News) Last week Moody’s Investors Services published an exceptional report about Islamic banking industry. Entitled, “Frequently Asked Questions: Notable Trends in Global Islamic Finance”, the report revealed some valuable insights into the potential of Islamic banking. Yet, one […]
http://www.business -standard. com/common/ news_article. php?leftnm= 10&bKeyFlag http://tinyurl.com/6xn2pz Sidhartha / Mumbai July 21, 2008, 0:29 IST Membership to help domestic banks access developed markets. Like the global nuclear power club, India is set to join the anti-money laundering syndicate – Financial Action Task Force (FATF) -later this year, which will help local banks access developed country […]
http://www.middle-east-online.com/english/business/?id=26832=26832&format=0 2008-07-10 Total chief: Too risky to invest in Iran De Margerie’s statement deals heavy blow to Iran’s hopes of boosting its key energy sector. LONDON – The head of French energy giant Total said in an interview published Thursday that it is too politically risky to invest in Iran, dealing a serious blow […]
(MENAFN – Khaleej Times) Emirates NBD, National Bank of Oman and three European banks have helped Uralsib Bank, Russia’s biggest privately owned lender, get a loan of $313 million (Dh1.15 billion) from a group of 32 banks for its trade finance business. The money will be lent to industrial companies in Russia, […]
hat tip-Christopher H. EU Approves Sanctions Against Iran’s Largest Bank Monday , June 23, 2008 BRUSSELS, Belgium — European Union nations approved new sanctions against Iran on Monday, including an assets freeze of the country’s biggest bank. The Bank of Melli is suspected of providing services to Iran’s nuclear and ballistic missile programs and, in […]
Press Release Are Your Mutual Funds Terror-Free? The Next Step in Socially Responsible Investing: http://www.terrorfreecalculator.com/ PHOENIX, April 30, 2008 — Conflict Securities Advisory Group (CSAG) and Overlap Inc. today officially launched terrorfreecalculator.com (http://www.terrorfreecalculator.com/), a new Web site dedicated to equipping investors in determining whether their mutual funds invest in companies that do business in […]
Khaleej Times Online http://www.khaleejtimes.com/DisplayArticleNew.asp?xfile=data/business/2008/April/business_April778.xml§ion=business&col= (example of sukuk from a malaysian source for demonstration purposes) Pakistan appoints advisers for first domestic sukuk (Reuters) 25 April 2008 KARACHI – Pakistan has appointed Dubai Islamic Bank and Standard Chartered Bank Pakistan to manage its first local currency Islamic bond, or sukuk, to be issued this fiscal year, […]
http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=20601109&sid=aSUZkL801YwY&refer=home Carlyle Scrounges for Buyouts in Dubai as Rubenstein Rues Fund By Jason Kelly April 23 (Bloomberg) — It’s been a rough few months for David Rubenstein, co-founder and managing director of Carlyle Group. As the subprime crisis sent dealmaking into a tailspin last August, Carlyle barely saved its buyout of Home Depot […]
Liverpool http://www.eufootball.biz/Clubs/2404089-DIC-Gillett-Liverpool-takeover.html England – 24 April, 2008 Despite all the intrigue and ownership battles at English Liverpool, Dubai International Capital (DIC) is confident it has broken through and will soon have a stake in the club. DIC’s chief negotiator Amanda Staveley and chief executive Sameer Al-Ansari, attended Teusday’s Champions League match as guests […]
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