Nasser Al Shaali opens Islamic & Ethical Finance conference

This event, hosted by DIFC in association with The Wall Street Journal, forms part of a series of week-long conferences, summits and boutique events being held in the DIFC from 17th - 23rd November 2007.

Today's landmark Islamic and Ethical Finance conference examined the positioning of this high-growth industry, and participants debated ways of broadening its appeal to ethically-aware investors and consumers around the world.

In his opening remarks, Nasser Al Shaali highlighted the increasing international interest in this dynamic sector: "Today, Islamic finance is only a drop in the global finance ocean; investors around the world are learning that Islamic finance offers attractive alternatives to conventional finance, a way to diversify investment portfolios and manage risks. It also provides alternatives that are both environmentally and socially responsible."

During his speech, Al Shaali addressed some of the challenges to be faced in order to facilitate the progress of the Islamic finance industry: transparency; human capital; under-developed infrastructure; and the lack of a minimum set of globally accepted and applied standards for the Islamic finance industry.

He recognised the need for standardisation in order to raise the sophistication of the industry and make it more attractive to a wider pool of investors. However, he also acknowledged the massive potential of Islamic finance, the depth and breadth of offering, geographic availability, and increase in global popularity and acceptance.

"Innovation is taking place all across the world, and particularly at major international financial centres. Traditional financial industry strongholds in the non-Muslim world are increasingly adopting regulatory environments to attract Islamic finance. We are seeing this movement in Europe, North America and increasingly in Asia", he concluded.

Nasser also discussed the emergence of the South, which the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development describes as a "sustainable, rather than a transitional, phenomenon" and South-South trade to be "not only a wave of the present, but of the future as well".

Moderated by Andrew Critchlow, Managing Editor of Zawya Dow Jones, the day's agenda included speeches, panel discussions, case studies and interactive sessions incorporating real-time research and polling.

Keynote speeches were given on topical issues such as ethical responsibilities of the product issuer and codifying scholars' opinions around the globe, with in-depth case studies provided on Sukuk and Takaful.

There were a number of panel discussions featuring prominent experts in Islamic finance from regional and international financial institutions, advisory firms and regulators. Issues addressed included: Islamic finance and ethics; an integrated legal framework for cross border Islamic finance; product innovation; and the recruitment needs in Islamic finance.