Does Your Financial Institution Participate in Shariah Compliant Finance?
The most common requests we receive here at SFW are questions as to whether banks or brokerage houses “are Shariah-compliant?” As a result of these numerous inquiries, for the past several weeks, we have carefully compiled a list of financial institutions active in the USA that have some form of tie to Shariah Compliant Finance. […]
Shariah Finance Watch editor briefs Congressional staffers on Shariah-Compliant Finance
Recently we had the opportunity to brief staff members from 10 Congressional offices on the threat of Shariah Finance. The briefing was recorded and we have posted the full 1-hour briefing here for SFW viewers… Shariah Compliant Finance and Financial Jihad
On June 1, 2012, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit ruled that a federal taxpayer lacks “standing” to challenge the government’s use of taxpayer funds to support sharia-based activities. The case, which is captioned on appeal as Murray v. United States Department of Treasury, et al., was brought by American Freedom Law Center […]
Just in time for the victory by socialists, facilitated at least partially by Islamist backing, Shariah-Compliant Finance has entered the real estate market in France… La Française AM has launched the first Sharia compliant OPCI – collective real estate vehicles with simplified investment rules with leverage – into the French market as part of the […]
We suppose that when you live under an atheist, communist system, it makes no difference to you whether the food is halal or haram. Add in a dash of capitalism and presto! You get a foothold for Shariah-compliance in a city-state with virtually no Muslim population. Such is the nature of the petrodollar driven Islamic […]
Here we have two important links that touch on themes that we have covered extensively over the years: Zakat, Jihad and Shariah-Compliant Finance. The first article from the excellent Gates of Vienna blog, points out that one of the destinations of zakat (tithing in Islam) is “those fighting in the way of allah…” http://gatesofvienna.blogspot.com/2012/04/on-zakat-and-jihad.html The […]
A firm called Ethical Asset Management in the UK is launching a Sukuk fund for individual investors. This is fairly unremarkable, but the designation “ethical” is worth commenting on. Ethical is a subjective term. To most Westerners, there is little or nothing ethical about Shariah. On the contrary, many of the tenets of Shariah are […]
It is widely known that much of the funding for Jihadist terrorist organizations, such as Al Qaeda, Hamas, Abu Sayyef and Jemaah Islamiyah come from private donations to Islamic charities through zakat payments, a system of tithing in Islam. The Saudi government claims that they are virtually powerless to stop this activity, something that makes […]
Congressional Report: Hezbollah has “several thousand” donors in the USA
A report issued by the House Homeland Security Committee indicates that Hezbollah has a large and threatening presence inside the USA and is successfully raising funds inside the USA to support its Jihad. Among the findings outlined in the report which are particularly relevant for SFW readers: • Counterterrorism officials consider Hezbollah fundraising cells to […]
The intrepid and illustrious Joy Brighton weighs in on Goldman Sachs’ ridiculous foray into the world of Shariah-Compliant Finance. This is an excellent article that regretfully we previously overlooked… Excerpt and LINK: In September 2011, Goldman Sachs announced it would issue a $2 billion Shariah Compliant Islamic Bond derivative known as a “Sukuk” to finance […]
Money Jihad Blog: Why Minneapolis’s shariah loans must end
This is an excellent piece from an excellent blog that all SFW readers should be visiting on a regular basis. This particular entry is especially important as several folks we have spoken with view the Minneapolis program as “no big deal.” It is a big deal and the good folks at Money Jihad blog do […]
The Weekly Standard has published an article that was linked on Drudge today about German bank WestLB rolling out its Islamic Strategy Index Certificate. The value of the certificate is based on the value of the WestLB Islamic Deutschland Index, consisting of shares of ten German firms “whose business activities are consistent with the ethical rules of […]
Regular readers of SFW know of the concerns over zakat, a form of tithing in Islam that is at least partially authorized–and in some cases mandated–to go to those waging jihad for allah. Our latest essay on this subject can be found here: https://shariahfinancewatch.org/2011/10/17/correcting-the-new-misinformation-on-islamic-charities-funding-jihadist-terrorism/ Obviously, this only tells half the story. The other side of […]
Maybe the only thing worse than getting in bed with the financial jihadists is to get in bed with the financial jihadists, only to find out they don’t want you. That may be the situation Goldman Sachs finds itself in with regard to its Islamic bond (sukuk) program. It seems Goldman got the blessing from […]
Egyptian Islamist Parties Declare Stock Exchange Shariah-Compliant
The imposition of Shariah in Egypt as part of the so-called “Arab Spring,” has entered the financial realm, with the Islamist parties declaring the Egyptian Stock Exchange to be “Shariah-Compliant…” Egypt’s political powers expressed their support for the Egyptian Stock Exchange at a press conference Monday, as the Islamist parties, which dominate parliament, pointed out […]
South Africa appears to be preparing to issue Islamic bonds (sukuk) in the near future, as the country’s central bank has asked private banks for proposals for such a venture. South Africa has a relatively small Muslim population, so there can be little doubt that the instigation behind this move comes from outside the country, […]
Craziness for Profit: Shariah Scholar/Advisor Mufti Taqi Usmani Blames Commodities Markets for Financial Crisis
At SFW we have covered Mufti Taqi Usmani extensively over the years. He has long been considered one of the most prominent and influential Shariah scholars in the world of Shariah Compliant Finance. According to many observers, critics and market participants alike, Usmani is the Shariah finance […]
Correcting The New Misinformation on Islamic Charities Funding Jihadist Terrorism
The Guardian in the UK has come out with an article (“Counterterrorism laws taking their toll on humanitarian action”) critical of US counterterrorism efforts that are designed to prevent the funneling of money to Jihadist terrorist groups, especially in Gaza and Somalia, two hotbeds of Jihadist terrorist activity. When ever we see misguided and ignorant […]
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 […]
Money Jihad blog has posted two important articles over the past week regarding the Shariah-compliant alternative to conventional financing known as murabaha. One thing to remember about murabaha is that, almost invariably, these arrangements cost the borrower more than conventional financing would. Money Jihad compares murabaha to “rent-to-own” deals in the US. We think the comparison is […]
An Iranian businessman, Amir-Mansour Aria, has been accused of defrauding the world’s second largest Shariah-compliant bank out of $2.6 billion. SFW readers may recall us mentioning the bank, Bank Saderat, from time to time: https://shariahfinancewatch.org/2009/08/12/shariah-compliant-finance-helps-terrorist-banks-in-iran/ Bank Saderat is second only to Iran’s Bank Melli on the list of largest Shariah-compliant financial institutions in the world. Iranian […]
Here we go again: Zakat goes to fighters
One of our favorite pastimes here at SFW is to uncover internet articles and postings which reveal the true nature of zakat–the uses of zakat that the financial jihadists would just as soon not have us kafirs learn about. We have found numerous references over the years to zakat being used to fund Jihadists. Here […]
The indispensable people over at The Investigative Project on Terrorism are reporting that the Obama Justice Department have reached a settlement with a Shariah-compliant financial institution being investigated for involvement in terrorism financing and tax evasion. The Islamic Investment Company of the Gulf (IICG) was part of a web of financial institutions with ties to […]
Some REALLY Bad Ideas on How to Solve America’s Debt Problems
Not surprisingly, the financial jihadists are promoting Shariah as the solution to America’s debt problems. We’ve seen this before. Back in 2008, in the wake of the subprime mortgage debacle and near-financial meltdown, the financial jihadists insisted that Shariah-compliant finance would have avoided the whole mess. Then, in 2009, defaulting on sukuk (Islamic bonds) just […]
Readers of SFW may notice that we have devoted several posts in recent weeks to Nigeria. The chief of the central bank in Nigeria, Mallam Sanusi, is an unapologetic financial jihadist and describes himself as a “shariah scholar.” He has been pushing hard for Shariah banking and finance in Nigeria, so hard in fact, that he […]
It’s not so newsworthy that foreign investors are interested in acquiring a 50% share of Bank Muamalat, a major shariah-compliant bank in Indonesia. But it is worth mentioning that Indonesia’s central bank has declared that no foreign investor will be permitted to alter the bank’s shariah-compliance platform. Note that when Shariah-compliant institutions invest in the West, […]
Hat tip to Creeping Sharia: http://creepingsharia.wordpress.com/2011/06/26/canadian-mosque-gets-sharia-compliant-loan-fails-to-pay-it-back/ A Halifax, Nova Scotia mosque and community center run by the Maritime Muslim Academy has had a lien placed on its assets by the architecture firm it hired to design the complex. The mosque was not financed in a conventional manner, since paying or receiving interest is haram under […]
Nearly two years ago, SFW published an article in which we uncovered that a Kuwaiti real estate investment concern had successfully imposed Shariah on tenants of its facilities in Colorado by refusing to allow certain types of businesses to operate and activities to take place on their property: https://shariahfinancewatch.org/2009/08/17/kuwait-islamic-bank-successfully-imposes-shariah-in-the-usa-courtesy-of-udr/ The article didn’t get any particular […]
Egypt delays sukuk as financial jihad comes to South Africa and elsewhere
The political unrest in Egypt has forced that country to delay setting up the structure for sukuk (Islamic) issuance, but the financial jihad is moving into Nigeria, Kenya and, most ominously, South Africa. The delay in Egypt will no doubt be short-lived, given the growing influence of the Muslim Brotherhood in the political power structure […]
Minnesota Governor Tim Pawlenty, who recently launched a presidential exploration committee, was personally responsible for shutting down Minnesota’s Shariah-compliant mortgage program last year. Bravo, Governor Pawlenty. He has demonstrated great courage and appreciation for the US constitution that governors in states like South Dakota, Michigan and New Jersey would do well to emulate. It turns […]
Categories
Archives