Sarasin Group creates a new benchmark in Islamic wealth management

Notes and media contacts

Sharia: Sharia is Islamic law as revealed in the Quran and through the examples of the Prophet Muhammad. A Sharia-compliant product meets the requirements of Islamic law. A Sharia board is a committee of Islamic scholars available to a financial institution for guidance and supervision in the development and monitoring of Sharia-compliant products.

Wakala: Many Islamic finance transactions are based on Wakala, which is a Sharia-compliant fiduciary agreement between two parties - the Wakeel (agent) and the Muwakel. In this agreement the Muwakel gives clear instructions to the Wakeel to conclude an act on behalf of and full risk of the Muwakel. Thus Wakala is a transaction in which a bank or Islamic financial institution acts on behalf and for the risk of an investor in concluding a financial transaction.

Murabaha: Murabaha is the most popular and most common mode of Islamic financing. It is also known as mark-up or cost-plus financing. The word Murabaha is derived from the Arabic word Ribh which means profit. Murabaha is defined as a contract of sale in which a commodity is sold for profit. The seller is obliged to tell the buyer his cost price and the profit he is making. This contract has been slightly modified for application in today's financial sector and has become the single most popular financing technique among Islamic banks globally. It is estimated that 80 to 90% of financial operations of some Islamic banks are Murabaha-based.

Maraya: Maraya is an Islamic structured product based on Murabaha or a series of Murabaha transactions. The structure is based on an agreement between the investor and the bank in which the risk/return requirements are addressed and the payout mechanism is clearly defined. The structure's payout is subject to the behaviour of an asset class of choice, which both parties have agreed upon in advance.

Sarasin - Sustainable Swiss Private Banking since 1841
The Sarasin Group has its roots as a leading Swiss private bank. As an international financial service provider committed to sustainability, the Group is now represented in more than 20 locations in Europe, the Middle East, and Asia. By end of June 2009 it managed total client assets of CHF79.9bn and employed around 1,500 staff. Its majority shareholder is the AAA-rated Dutch Rabobank.

Bank Sarasin & Co. Ltd - Sustainable Swiss Private Banking since 1841 - www.sarasin.ch
Bank Sarasin is a leading Swiss private bank whose many years of banking experience has made it consciously opt for sustainability as a key component of its corporate philosophy. It provides a high level of service and expertise when acting as investment advisor and asset manager for private and institutional clients. Within Switzerland, Sarasin has offices in Basel (head office), Berne, Geneva, Lugano, and Zurich. Bank Sarasin & Co. Ltd is listed on the SIX Swiss Exchange.

Bank Sarasin-Alpen (ME) Ltd - www.sarasin-alpen.com
Bank Sarasin-Alpen is incorporated as Bank Sarasin-Alpen (ME) Limited in Dubai, as Bank Sarasin-Alpen Qatar, LLC, in Qatar and as Sarasin-Alpen LLC, in Oman. These subsidiaries of Bank Sarasin, Basel, Switzerland provide the complete range of Bank Sarasin's private banking services. In addition to UAE, Qatar and Oman, the bank caters to the requirements of private and institutional clients in the Middle East and South Asia.

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