Global Leaders in Islamic Finance: Interviews with the Experts Shaping a New Financial World

This book is a rare gathering of an elite group of leaders and experts who have broken new ground in the field of Islamic finance. These individuals are not mere experts - visionaries and pioneers like Haj Saeed Lootah, His Royal Highness Prince Mohamed Al Faisal Al Saud and Sheikh Saleh Abdullah Kamel were the trailblazers and true pioneers who established the world's first Islamic banks. They are joined in the book by others who have shaped the rise and development of the global Islamic finance industry. Banking pioneers, Shari'ah scholars, academics, government officials, and others, who have all worked closely these last four decades to mould the young Islamic Finance industry into its current shape -- a global industry enjoying double-digit growth, and still discovering room for more. The book gives rare insight into each pioneer's and expert's perspectives on the development, rise, and future trajectories of the Islamic Finance industry, within and without their own fields of specialisation. Most significantly, the interviews throw up candid opinions and perspectives on the issues affecting Islamic finance. This book is a rare gathering of an elite group of leaders and experts who have broken new ground in the field of Islamic finance. These individuals are not mere experts - visionaries and pioneers like Haj Saeed Lootah, His Royal Highness Prince Mohamed Al Faisal Al Saud and Sheikh Saleh Abdullah Kamel were the trailblazers and true pioneers who established the world's first Islamic banks. They are joined in the book by others who have shaped the rise and development of the global Islamic finance industry. Banking pioneers, Shari'ah scholars, academics, government officials, and others, who have all worked closely these last four decades to mould the young Islamic Finance industry into its current shape -- a global industry enjoying double-digit growth, and still discovering room for more. The book gives rare insight into each pioneer's and expert's perspectives on the development, rise, and future trajectories of the Islamic Finance industry, within and without their own fields of specialisation. Most significantly, the interviews throw up candid opinions and perspectives on the issues affecting Islamic finance. Cover......Page 1 Title Page......Page 5 Copyright......Page 6 Contents......Page 9 Acknowledgments......Page 15 Selected List of Acronyms......Page 19 Introduction......Page 23 Chapter 1 The Islamic Economist/Activist......Page 31 Early Influences: Muhammad Iqbal, Muhammad Asad, and Sayyid Abul A'la Mawdudi......Page 33 Operationalising Islam: Sayyid Abul A'la Mawdudi and Jama'at-e-Islami......Page 35 Milestone: First International Conference on Islamic Economics......Page 38 International Influence: Islamic Economics as an Academic Discipline......Page 40 Spreading the Message Abroad: Europe and the Islamic Foundation in the United Kingdom......Page 44 Islamisation of the Pakistani Economy......Page 45 Islamic Economics versus the Narrow Pursuit of Profit......Page 49 Forty Years On: The Wood for the Trees......Page 51 The Last Word......Page 54 Chapter 2 The Very First Mover......Page 55 Always Begin at the Beginning......Page 57 Dubai: The Environment......Page 60 Dubai Islamic Bank: Early Response......Page 62 First Islamic Banking Conference-May 1979, Dubai......Page 64 Development and Challenges......Page 65 DIB, UAE, and Corporate Governance......Page 69 Hajj Saeed, Dubai, and the Islamic Economy......Page 71 Forty Years On......Page 73 The Last Word......Page 75 Chapter 3 The Well of Influence......Page 77 Germination......Page 78 Catalysis: The Establishment of Dar Al-Maal Al-Islami......Page 82 The Business of DMI: Navigating Uncharted Waters......Page 88 Current Holdings......Page 92 Forty Years On: "The Aura Is Much Bigger than the Reality''......Page 94 "The Muslim World Went to Sleep''......Page 102 "Eventually, I Think, Everybody Will Become a Salafi''......Page 107 The Last Word......Page 110 Chapter 4 Steadily Spreading the Blessings......Page 111 Spreading the Baraka......Page 114 Gone West: Al Baraka in the United Kingdom......Page 118 Islamic Megabank......Page 121 World Zakat Fund......Page 123 The Halal Industry......Page 124 Ask Not What the Community of Islamic Countries Can Do for You......Page 125 Forty Years On: Mechanisms over Maqasid......Page 126 The Last Word......Page 129 Chapter 5 The Systematic Rise of a National Industry......Page 131 Lead-up to the 1981 Decision......Page 132 Influence #2: Tunku Abdul Rahman, the OIC, and the IDB......Page 133 National Steering Committee and Establishing Bank Islam......Page 135 Setting the Pace and Character of Overall National Economic Development......Page 138 Phase 1: 1983 to 1993-Establishment and Entrenchment......Page 139 Shari'ah-Compliant Financial Instruments......Page 143 Phase II: 1993 to 2000-Liberalisation and Expansion......Page 144 On Growth and Development......Page 146 Islamic Capital Market: Malaysia as a Global Sukuk Leader......Page 147 A Model Nation for Islamic Finance......Page 152 Phase III: 2000 and Beyond-Internationalisation......Page 156 The Better System......Page 157 Thirty Years On: And Still Much More to Be Done......Page 162 The Last Word......Page 167 Chapter 6 The Islamic Economist......Page 169 The Second Stage of Islamic Economics......Page 171 Risk Transfer and the Global Financial Crisis......Page 175 Advancing Risk Sharing for the Benefit of All Humanity......Page 177 "In Islam, the 'Other' Doesn't Exist''......Page 181 IMF and Islamic Finance......Page 182 Forty Years On: The Wood for the Trees......Page 185 Building the Roads to a Better Economy......Page 188 The Last Word......Page 190 Chapter 7 The Global Standard-Setter......Page 191 Accounting for a New Paradigm......Page 193 AAOIFI: A Landmark in the History of Modern Islamic Finance......Page 197 Setting the Standards......Page 198 IFSB: Working with the Regulators......Page 202 Changing the Landscape: Integrating Islamic Finance into the Global Financial Architecture......Page 208 Twenty Years of Setting Standards for Islamic Finance......Page 211 Moving Forward......Page 213 The Last Word......Page 214 Chapter 8 The Shari'ah Scholar......Page 215 The Role of Shari'ah Scholars in Islamic Financial Institutions......Page 218 What Is Shari'ah Compliance?......Page 219 Shari'ah Compliance for an Ethical Society......Page 221 Second-Generation Shari'ah Scholars......Page 226 On Training Shari'ah Scholars for Islamic Finance: Climb the Stairs One by One......Page 227 Two Boards, Three Boards, Four Boards, Five. How Many Is Too Many?......Page 229 Great Strides in Islamic Finance: The Contribution of Shari'ah Scholars......Page 233 "Monumental Fatwa": Dow Jones Islamic Market Index......Page 234 Forty Years On: The Wood for the Trees......Page 236 The Last Word......Page 238 Chapter 9 The Lawyer......Page 241 Many Firsts......Page 243 "The United States Is Probably the Second Largest Islamic Finance Market in the World"......Page 247 "The United States Is One of the Easiest Places in the World to Do a Shari'ah-Compliant Deal"......Page 250 Critical Factors for the Development of Islamic Finance......Page 252 Code of Conduct: Lawyers and Shari'ah Scholars......Page 256 Sheikh Muhammad Taqi Usmani Sukuk Pronouncement......Page 258 On Freely Circulating Fatawa......Page 259 101: On Wholesale and Retail......Page 260 Maqasid al Shari'ah and the Non-Muslim Islamic Finance Lawyer......Page 262 Seventeen Years On: The Woods for the Trees......Page 263 The Last Word......Page 264 Chapter 10 The Equity Capital Market Man......Page 267 Building Indices and Benchmarks for the Global Industry......Page 269 Global Viability: Outperforming Conventional Indices and Averting Enron......Page 271 Wherefore the Pulse?: Shari'ah-Compliant and Shari'ah-Based Indices......Page 274 Gaps and Disconnects......Page 278 Major Disconnect: On Information......Page 282 The United States of America, Islam, and Islamic Finance......Page 283 The Halal Industry......Page 286 The Last Word......Page 288 Chapter 11 More than the Sum of Its Parts: Forty Years of Islamic Finance......Page 291 Growth beyond Expectations......Page 293 My Shari'ah, Your Shari'ah: What Is So Authentically Islamic about This System?......Page 296 A Viable Business Model......Page 300 Beyond Banking and Finance: The Islamic Economy......Page 303 The Last Word: Commitment to the Islamic Basis as a Better Way......Page 305 Glossary......Page 309 References......Page 313 About the Author......Page 327 Notes......Page 329 Index......Page 345 Interviews With The Professionals Driving The Rapid Global Growth Of Islamic Finance Though The Modern Islamic Finance System Has Existed For More Than Forty Years, Its Size And Influence In The Banking Industry Has Expanded Massively In Just The Last Decade. This Book Looks At Islamic Finance From The Perspective Of The Experts Shaping The Industry, Including Some Of The Founders Of The First Islamic Banks'haj Saeed Lootah, His Royal Highness Prince Mohamed Al Faisal Al Saud, And Sheikh Saleh Abdullah Kamel'as Well As Other Professionals Who Have Greatly Influenced The Industry. Journalist And Correspondent Emmy Alim Offers Rare Insight On Islamic Finance With These Insightful Interviews Focused On The Development, Rise, And Future Trajectory Of Islamic Finance.-features Rare Insider Perspective On The Rise Of Islamic Finance With Interviews From The Top Names In The Industry In Asia, The Middle East, Europe, And The United States -an Ideal Resource For Bankers And Finance Professionals Working In Traditional Finance As Well As Islamic Finance -written By Noted Correspondent And Journalist Emmy Alim, Who Has Covered Islamic Finance For Such Publications As Islamic Banking & Finance Magazine And Bn Magazine. The Islamic Economist/activist -- The Very First Mover -- The Well Of Influence -- Steadily Spreading The Blessings -- The Systematic Rise Of A National Industry -- The Islamic Economist -- The Global Standard-setter -- The Shari'ah Scholar -- The Lawyer -- The Equity Capital Market Man -- More Than The Sum Of Its Parts: Forty Years Of Islamic Finance. Emmy Abdul Alim. Includes Bibliographical References And Index.

Interviews with the professionals driving the rapid global growth of Islamic finance

Though the modern Islamic finance system has existed for more than forty years, its size and influence in the banking industry has expanded massively in just the last decade. This book looks at Islamic finance from the perspective of the experts shaping the industry, including some of the founders of the first Islamic banks—Haj Saeed Lootah, His Royal Highness Prince Mohamed Al Faisal Al Saud, and Sheikh Saleh Abdullah Kamel—as well as other professionals who have greatly influenced the industry.Editor Emmy Alim offers rare insight on Islamic finance with these insightful interviews focused on the development, rise, and future trajectory of Islamic finance.

• Features rare insider perspective on the rise of Islamic finance with interviews from the top names in the industry in Asia, the Middle East, Europe, and the United States
• An ideal resource for bankers and finance professionals working in traditional finance as well as Islamic finance
• Written by Emmy Alim, Editor for Thomson Reuters Islamic Finance Gateway, a multi-platform forum for experts and professionals in the Islamic finance industry

Interviews with the professionals driving the rapid global growth of Islamic finance Though the modern Islamic finance system has existed for more than forty years, its size and influence in the banking industry has expanded massively in just the last decade. This book looks at Islamic finance from the perspective of the experts shaping the industry, including some of the founders of the first Islamic banks—Haj Saeed Lootah, His Royal Highness Prince Mohamed Al Faisal Al Saud, and Sheikh Saleh Abdullah Kamel—as well as other professionals who have greatly influenced the industry. Editor Emmy Alim offers rare insight on Islamic finance with these insightful interviews focused on the development, rise, and future trajectory of Islamic finance. Features rare insider perspective on the rise of Islamic finance with interviews from the top names in the industry in Asia, the Middle East, Europe, and the United States An ideal resource for bankers and finance professionals working in traditional finance as well as Islamic finance Written by Emmy Alim, Editor for Thomson Reuters Islamic Finance Gateway, a multi-platform forum for experts and professionals in the Islamic finance industry