Standard & Poor's voted Best Takaful Rating Agency

The award, which was bestowed during a ceremony at The 2nd International Takaful Summit 2008 in London on July 15th 2008, recognizes Standard & Poor's excellence in Takaful and Retakaful insurance ratings and exceptional contribution towards the development of the global Islamic insurance industry.

Standard & Poor's is the leading rating agency for Islamic insurers, with more ratings on Takaful and Retakaful firms in Africa, Asia and Middle East than any other provider. The International Takaful Awards 2008 are an initiative of the Middle East Business Forum, Islamic Banking & Finance Institute of Malaysia and Afkar Consulting. Winners of the eleven awards categories were selected from a pool of nominees by a panel of expert Shariah judges, lawyers, journalists and practitioners from leading Islamic insurance firms worldwide.

"Standard & Poor's has been at the forefront of developing an analytical framework for evaluating innovative Islamic issuers and Takaful firms since 1997 when we published our first rating on Tunisia-based reinsurer B.E.S.T. Reinsurance Co, and we're proud to be recognized by the Islamic finance industry for helping to lay the foundations for its future growth,"

said Yann Le Pallec, managing director of Standard & Poor's Ratings Services.

"With an established Takaful rating criteria, Standard & Poor's has the depth of experience, infrastructure and global presence required to support the growth of this dynamic market, and we continue to experience strong demand worldwide for new ratings from both Islamic and traditional insurers," he added.

"With rapid economic growth across the Gulf Cooperation Council and a growing awareness among the sizable, underinsured Muslim population of the benefits of Shariah-compliant insurance products, the Islamic insurance sector is well placed to continue its impressive rate of growth and become a major contributor to the global risk transfer market place," said Kevin Willis, credit analyst at Standard & Poor's Ratings Services.

"Outside the Gulf, London, as the world's leading centre for international insurance, is fast becoming the European hub for Islamic insurance, serving as a gateway to key growth markets in continental Europe," he added.

Among the ten other award categories, Standard & Poor's-rated Bahrain-based retakaful reinsurer Hannover ReTakaful B.S.C. won the award for "Best Retakaful Company", while Tunisia's B.E.S.T. Reinsurance Co. and its Dubai-listed insurance operating company Salama, and Dubai-based reinsurer Takaful Re Ltd. were also nominated for their contributions to the Takaful industry.