The one-day conference, entitled: "The financing alternative: from niche market to mainstream business" was hosted by The Economist. The summit was aimed at banks, asset managers and investment companies, focusing on the legal framework underpinning the Islamic financial services sector and highlighting opportunities and benefits for the entire economy, as well as for individual investors.
The line up for the summit consisted of several high-level international speakers, including: Mohammed Abdel-Haq, Managing Director of HSBC Amanah Private Banking; Uto Baader, CEO of Baader Wertpapierhandelsbank AG; Nadim Khan, Partner at Herbert Smith LLP; and Dr. Humayon Dar, Managing Director of Dar Al Istithmar.
During his speech, His Excellency Dr. Omar bin Sulaiman, Governor of the Dubai International Financial Centre (DIFC), underlined DIFC's involvement in Islamic finance: "Dubai pioneered modern-day Islamic banking and is one of the major centres of innovation in Islamic finance. DIFC plays a leading role in providing an infrastructure and environment that is helping the financial sector develop. This is certainly the case in the context of Islamic finance."
"DIFC in particular, is helping to spur creativity, originality and development by leading through example. Within Dubai this helps create a dynamic atmosphere, which in turn attracts both the financial and human capital that, in its turn, generates further innovation", he said.
With approximately 1.6 billion Muslims around the world, and the global market for Islamic financial services currently estimated at almost $250 billion worth of assets, this sector has also appealed to non-Muslim and ethical investors. Boasting an annual growth rate of around 15%, Islamic finance has moved from a niche market to a mainstream business and is now attracting attention from global financial institutions.
Indeed, Dubai's role in this shift has been significant, being ideally located within the Muslim world and between existing financial centres in the West and in the East. In its ambition to promote and develop Islamic financial services, the DIFC has embarked on a number of initiatives.
First and foremost, it has established the Islamic Finance Advisory Council, which plays a key strategic role in providing advice on Islamic finance and in helping the development of the industry. The Dubai International Financial Exchange (DIFX) has also been recognised for becoming the world's largest exchange for sukuk in terms of value, with eleven issues totalling more than $13 billion.
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Governor projects Dubai as a leading Islamic finance centre at economist conference in Switzerland
- United Arab Emirates: Thursday, September 06 - 2007 at 14:18
- PRESS RELEASE
His Excellency Dr. Omar bin Sulaiman, Governor of the Dubai International Financial Centre (DIFC), gave the opening address at yesterday's Islamic Finance Summit held in Geneva, Switzerland, outlining the importance of Islamic finance in today's global economy and emphasizing Dubai's significant role in its development.
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About the DIFC:
The Dubai International Financial Centre (DIFC) is an onshore hub for global finance. It bridges the time gap between the financial centers of Hong Kong and London and services a region with the largest untapped emerging market for financial services.
In just under two years, over 400 firms have registered at the DIFC. They operate in an open environment complemented with world-class regulations and standards. The DIFC offers its member institutions incentives such as 100 per cent foreign ownership, zero tax on income and profits and no restrictions on foreign exchange. In addition their business benefits from modern infrastructure, operational support and business continuity facilities of uncompromisingly high standards.
The DIFC is made up of the following core bodies:
1. The DIFC Authority (DIFCA) - Responsible for the Companies and Security Registries and attracting financial as well as non-financial institutions to set up in the DIFC. The DIFC Authority is also responsible for developing the financial services industry. (www.difc.ae)
2. The Dubai Financial Services Authority (DFSA) - An independent, unitary regulatory authority, responsible for the regulation of all DIFC operations. Its principle-based primary legislation is modeled on that used in London and New York and its regulatory regime operates to standards that meet or exceed those in major financial centers. (www.dfsa.ae)
3. The DIFC Courts - An independent court system set up to uphold the provisions of DIFC laws and regulations, the courts provide comprehensive legal redress in civil and commercial matters within the DIFC. The DIFC Courts system is especially designed to deal with all of sophisticated transactions that will be conducted within DIFC. The DIFC Court laws, based on the common law, not only sets out the jurisdiction of the court but also provides for a dispute resolution services, including arbitration and mediation, thus allowing for the independent administration of justice in the DIFC. ( www.difccourts.ae)
DIFC Investments- The creation of DIFC Investments will result in the allocation to it of all non public administration activities previously carried out by DIFC Authority. This will include amongst other things all commercial and other activities such as the operation and management of any current and future subsidiaries, the development of the centre's investment strategy and relevant policies and any other strategic investments or alliances which will further the goals and objectives of the Dubai International Financial Centre and contribute to the fulfillment of the Centre's vision. Some of the companies and organizations that DIFC Investments owns include:
1. The Dubai International Financial Exchange (DIFX) The DIFX is the region's first international financial exchange for equities, bonds, Islamic products, funds, index products and (subject to regulatory approval) derivatives. The target areas of the DIFX for seeking issuers include the Middle East and North Africa, as well as South Africa, Turkey and the Indian sub-continent. The regulator of the DIFX is the Dubai Financial Services Authority. The DIFX is located in the Dubai International Financial Centre (DIFC) and its owner is the DIFC Authority. (www.difx.ae)
2. Hawkamah- the first Institute for Corporate Governance in the region, has been established in partnership with a group of international institutions, including the Dubai International Financial Centre (DIFC), Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD), UAE Ministry of Finance and Industry, Centre for International Private Enterprise (CIPE), International Finance Corporation (IFC), the Union of Arab Banks (UAB), Dubai School of Government (DSG), Young Arab Leaders (YAL), and the Institute of Management Development (IMD). (www.hawkamah.org) .
Posted by Anne-Birte Stensgaard, Senior News EditorThursday, September 06 - 2007 at 14:18 UAE local time (GMT+4)
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