Issac John
Published: 30 December 2008

DUBAI - Islamic banking, which is predicted to become a $4 trillion global industry over the next five years, is the least affected sector in the current global economic meltdown triggered by subprime tsunami in the United States, experts said.

Khaled Al Aboodi, CEO and general manager of Islamic Corporation for the Development of the Private Sector (ICD), was quoted as saying that since Shariah did not allow Islamic banks to invest in subprime product, they were safer from the toxic subprime assets when compared to conventional banks. Read More...  

By Deborah Brewster
Published: 27 December 2008

New York: In a dire year for mutual funds, the Amana Trust Income Fund, the main Islamic investment fund, has trumped those from all other faiths in the US by losing only 25.8 per cent of its value for the year - half the average 44 per cent loss for US stock funds.

Nick Kaiser, the manager for the funds, said that Amana took in $40 million last month alone, with more than half of that from non-Muslim investors who are chasing the funds' strong returns. Read More...

Khalil Hanware | Arab News
Published: 22 December 2008

JEDDAH: Islamic banks are the least affected by the current global financial crisis triggered by subprime tsunami in the United States, the CEO & general manager of Islamic Corporation for the Development of the Private Sector (ICD) said.

In an exclusive interview with Arab News, Khaled Al-Aboodi said, “Islamic banks are Shariah-compliant and Shariah does not allow them to invest in subprime products as compared to conventional banks.” Read More...

By Babu Das Augustine, Banking Editor
Published: 17 December 2008

Dubai: Economists at Dubai International Financial Centre on Wednesday proposed an anchor basket for the Gulf common currency to be introduced from January 1, 2010.

The recommendation of the new anchor basket comes ahead of the meeting of the Gulf heads of states on December 29 and 30 in Muscat, Oman.

The proposed basket would comprise and give a 45 per cent weightage to the US dollar, followed by the euro at 35 per cent, the yen at 20 per cent and sterling at 5 per cent. Read More... 

Issac John
Published: 09 December 2008

DUBAI - Aggregate asset growth of global Islamic banking is poised to slow from 10 to 15 per cent in 2009, signaling a tough year ahead for the sector, Moody’s Investor Services said.

Combined assets of global Islamic financial institutions (IFIs), which are expected to post a growth of 20 to 30 per cent this year, have already shown signs of deceleration. Read More...