IFN OnAir

In conjunction with the State Bank of Pakistan’s Licensing and Regulatory Framework for Digital Banks, and with five digital banking licenses available in 2022, how will the development, provision and distribution of digital Islamic financial services evolve in Pakistan? How can Islamic finance in Pakistan successfully capitalise on technological innovation? What is the status of conversions of conventional banking institutions/branches to Islamic? What is the outlook for Islamic banking in Pakistan amidst these conversions and the expansion of existing outreach?

Ghulam Muhammad Abbasi, Director, Islamic Banking Department, State Bank of Pakistan

With the Bangladesh Sukuk market achieving several firsts in 2021, what is next for this burgeoning sector, and what effects will tax and regulatory changes have? Will we see further incentives and how can corporate issuers be encouraged to embrace Sukuk as a form of mainstream financing? How should Bangladesh further employ Shariah-based green and responsible financing solutions in response to important challenges, such as limiting climate change, alleviating poverty, and driving financial inclusion? How are Islamic financial institutions in Bangladesh employing technology to help the unbanked, while also improving end-user experience across a range of financing activities? Finally, as a fast-growing, export-driven economy, what role should Bangladesh’s Islamic banks play in the facilitation of international trade, and what financing tools do local small and medium companies require?

Dr Mizanur Rahman, Commissioner, Bangladesh Securities and Exchange Commission (BSEC)

What is social finance, why is it important and how can Islamic financial institutions play a significant role in its growth and development? In a post-pandemic world, what does social finance offer in terms of relief and renewal, and what real-life examples are there of this in practice? How can social Sukuk be used to support enterprise, entrepreneurship, home ownership and job creation, as well as healthcare and education? What has worked towards these goals in other countries and what can be learnt from these achievements? How can Islamic social finance be deployed to assist with liquidity and funding for the vital SME sector? Can Islamic social finance play a role in the evermore consequential issue of food security, simultaneously helping the underprivileged and micro-enterprises? With such goals in mind, how do we design effective models and strategies, offer innovative products and measure the impact of these important initiatives?

The digitalization of Islamic financial services: what is working, what is viable, and what is not? What do the answers to these questions mean for the evolution of Islamic financial services in Southeast Asia? With new neo-banking licenses in Malaysia, how will the development, provision and distribution of digital Islamic financial services evolve in the near-term, and what models will be deemed successful? What further measures would assist domestic Islamic financial institutions in the modernization and digital transformation of Islamic retail, commercial, Takaful and pension offerings? What are notable milestones and achievements in the development of systems and software for Islamic banks and financial institutions? What technology is available to help Islamic financial institutions drive scale, integrity, efficiency and ultimately profitability? Finally, is technology being fully utilized to address key customer concerns surrounding authenticity and the minimization of uncertainty? We ask an expert panel.

What represents innovation in the contemporary Sukuk market: pioneering structures, sourcing underliers, and the transition from ESG to Impact? What options do hybrid or combination Sukuk offer issuers, particularly in asset heavy industries such as oil and gas, and aviation, and why have such structures been so successful in the Gulf? How do Tier-1 and Tier-2 Sukuk offer financial institutions a flexible, efficient and user-friendly way of satisfying regulatory capital requirements, and what do perpetual Sukuk structures offer such issuers? How has innovation been incorporated into project and infrastructure finance, particularly regarding concession agreements, cash contributions and investor protection? With ESG and sustainability continuing to grow in the Islamic capital markets issuance, when will we see the measurement of impact? Are sufficient issuers engaging with independent, third parties to measure green, sustainable and social credentials? With the demise of LIBOR, is SOFR a good alternative for the Islamic Capital Market? We seek the views of an expert panel.

How has the evolution of regional equity crowdfunding and peer-to-peer lending platforms created opportunities for the joint ownership of Shariah compliant assets and investment projects? How is technology increasing SMEs’ access to Shariah compliant capital, while also widening the investor base? What does the growth of digital investment management (DIM) platforms and robo-advisory mean for investment managers, and what new opportunities are available for Shariah compliant savers and investors? What are the potential uses and applications of digital assets in Southeast Asia’s financial markets today? What are the key risks and issues surrounding digital assets, P2P and ECF and what is the role of regulators in the development of an efficient digital marketplace in the region? We ask an expert panel.

We pose a series of high-level strategic questions to senior representatives of Islamic financial services industry. How can Islamic finance and investment create a genuinely competitive advantage in key areas such as retail, commercial, corporate banking and wealth management? Are there inhibitions and limitations the industry needs to acknowledge and overcome? Does Islamic finance want to become mainstream, or are we content with the plausible alternative label? What’s really working in financial technology, and who ultimately benefits: financial institutions, consumers, or both? Is the success of neo-banks inevitable, and how will they change the market? Having witnessed the remarkable growth of ESG and sustainable finance, on reflection, are there things Islamic finance could have done differently?

In this episode, IFN Managing Editor Vineeta Tan speaks to Dr Umar Oseni, the CEO of the International Islamic Liquidity Management Corporation (IILM), to discuss the current state of liquidity management for Islamic financial institutions and IILM’s 2023 plans.