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IFN Africa Dialogue 2022

•With ESG now driving financial innovation on the continent, what role will the symbiosis between Islamic finance and sustainable finance continue to play?

•How can financial institutions facilitate the development of financing and investment products that satisfy both green and Islamic credentials?

•With Sovereign Sukuk playing a leading role in African Islamic capital raising, what are the prospects for Islamic capital markets in Africa the coming year?

•What are investors seeking from Sukuk issuers in terms of innovation, structure, pricing and ratings, and what of other funding mechanisms such as syndicated lending and private placement?

•What is the evolution of Shariah compliant collective investment products available to investors, pension-holders and savers in Africa?

•With Africa as a favored existing investment destination, what are we seeing in the areas of Shariah compliant private equity and real estate investment, and are there further opportunities on the continent?

•With technology creating innovative Shariah compliant digital financial offerings what roles are being played by the new financial technology companies, as well as incumbent financial institutions?

•What products and business activities are still ripe for digital transformation in Africa and what of important activities such as microfinance?

•How will important ideas such as equity crowdfunding and peer-to-peer lending transform early and later stage Shariah compliant corporate funding, and what steps should regulators take to drive this exciting sector?

Moderator:

Abdulkader Thomas, Director, SHAPE Knowledge Services

Panelists:

Akeem Oyewale, CEO, Marble Capital

Dr Hassan Suleiman, Head of Economic Research and Policy Management, Securities and Exchange Commission, Nigeria

Agrarius Sustainability Engineered listed its inaugural Sukuk worth ZAR500 million (US$28.15 million) on the Johannesburg Stock Exchange on the 28th October 2022. ISFI speaks to Fatima Vawda, the managing director of 27four Investment Managers, to learn about this issuance.

The UK's fintech scene is vibrant and has great potential to grow, while demand in the real estate sector from Islamic investors remains high, Managing Associate Lingxi Wang and Associate Leena Payyappilly tell IFN's Nessreen Tamano in this podcast episode.

What does the transition to green and sustainable financing potentially mean for Omani issuers, and how will Islamic structures play a meaningful role in the shift? What opportunities are there for important domestic sectors such as aviation, oil and gas and other asset-heavy industries to adopt sustainable fundraising programs? What is the potential for private sector financing of green infrastructure projects in Oman? How market friendly is the Omani regulatory framework for sustainable finance and are market participants being encouraged to develop effective sustainability frameworks? Finally, how can Omani financial institutions develop effective Islamic sustainable investment products, satisfying the requirements of a range of savers and investors.

Identifying and evaluating key governmental and private sector initiatives designed to modernize and digitally transform the national economy, with a focus on Islamic financial services and digital assets. What measures would assist domestic Islamic banks in the further development of Islamic digital and crypto retail, wealth management, Takaful and pension offerings in Oman? How are regulator-fostered sandboxes contributing to the development and distribution of such products? How have efforts to recognise and regulate Islamic crowdfunding platforms created opportunities for the joint ownership of Shariah compliant assets and investment projects? Does Blockchain have a role in crowd and venture funding? How will the vital SME sector benefit from the new platforms and above initiatives? What role do DeFi, NFTs, crypto, tokenisation and other digital assets and technologies have in the future of Omani financial services and markets? We seek the views of an expert panel.

With Islamic real estate finance well established in the Sultanate, what is the scope for complex project and asset financing in Oman via Shariah compliant structures? Do Islamic products effectively lend themselves to fund public-private partnerships for the development of infrastructure and large-scale projects? What role should Islamic banks and venture capital play in this important activity, and what does the diminishing Musharakah structure offer? How will draft Sukuk and bond regulations further improve and standardize rules governing the issuance of Sukuk? Will regulations pave the way for the incorporation of innovative structures such as Waqf? With significant domestic institutions successfully accessing the Islamic finance market, what is the potential for other notable issuers? Finally, what funding options do Sukuk offer Omani financial institutions in terms of regulatory capital?

How are the key features of Oman Vision 2040 enabling growth of the Islamic banking and finance markets in Oman? How have successful regulatory initiatives contributed to Oman’s Islamic banking sector constituting more than 15% of the total banking market share? Will the new domestic Islamic banking landscape ultimately lead to enhanced product offerings and customer experience? Considering recent regulatory amendments to healthcare Takaful, how will the Omani Takaful sector continue to develop, and do Sukuk offer a viable funding route for Takaful companies? How will Shariah compliant financial technology, including the new crowdfunding platforms, further contribute to the transformation of the domestic financial services sector? Finally, now how significant will green and responsible finance be in the coming year for the domestic Islamic financial services sector?

With notable consolidation in recent years, what is a realistic assessment of the current Qatari Islamic financial services ecosystem, including banking and Takaful, and what opportunities and challenges now present themselves for the sector? With Qatar emerging as a leading Islamic fintech centre, how significant is the work of the Qatar FinTech Hub’s acceleration and incubation programs, and what other important initiatives are now taking shape in the country? With Qatar also looking to bolster its status as a Sukuk issuance hub, what steps can the country take to make Sukuk a mainstream financing option for corporate and financial institutions? How are Shariah compliant funding options being employed for infrastructure and large-scale projects in Qatar, and what is the potential for private sector financing of Islamic sustainable infrastructure, energy and tourism projects?

Moderator:
Simon Chan, Counsel, K&L Gates LLP

Panelists:

Aymane doukali, Head of Islamic and Structured Finance, Qatar Financial Centre (QFC)
Husain Alkhaja, GCC Regional Director, DDCAP
Mourad Ali Mizouri, MENA region Senior Division Manager (Business Development), The Islamic Corporation for the Insurance of Investment and Export Credit (ICIEC)
Nitish Bhojnagarwala, Vice President – Senior Credit Officer, Financial Institutions Group, Moody’s Investors Service
Sabir Ahmed, Executive Director Islamic Origination, Standard Chartered Bank
Dr Vladimir Malenko, Islamic Finance Advisor, Bedford Row Capital

Despite rising inflationary pressures and the threat of a global recession looming, Islamic funds and investment activities are picking up, according to Barry Cosgrave, a partner at legal firm Mayer Brown. Vineeta Tan speaks to Cosgrave to get a sense of how Islamic investors are behaving during this global downturn.    

In an open discussion, we ask an expert panel to consider and highlight key points, ideas and initiatives, and how these can be put into action to drive Islamic sustainable finance and investment forward. As industry, what should be our next steps, and how should we measure the impact of what we are trying to achieve? What would represent meaningful goals and tangible achievements for the sector? How do we effectively position and market Islamic sustainable finance and investment? What financial products, across a wide range of asset classes will the next generation demand, and how can these demands be met?