Welcome to the first Reuters Publishing Islamic special report – produced by journalists from IFR, PFI, Acquisition Monthly and IFR Securitisation Report. This is a truly global effort to capture the up-to-date picture of one of the world's most important capital markets, in detail. The report is introduced by Rushdi Siddiqui, Global Head of Islamic Finance across the Reuters network. In an important thought-leading piece, he argues: "For Islamic finance to become a global phenomenon and a viable alternative to the conventional asset class,...Read more
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Before Islamic finance pops the Saudi champagne on surviving the sub-prime induced credit crisis, the industry, much like conventional Western finance, needs to take a step back and reflect about the pathway forward. By Rushdi Siddiqui, Global Head of Islamic Finance, Reuters.
Sukuk issuance in 2009 has been dominated by the ijara format. David French looks into why this is the case and whether this pattern will continue into 2010.
Islamic and project finance would seem to be ideal bedfellows but for a variety of reasons the match has never been perfect. Now, however, with expectations much lower, some genuine progress can be made. By Rod Morrison.
The sukuk market has been gaining headlines, but Sharia-compliant products for equity investors have been around for years. Matthew Attwood asks if they really can be a substitute for investors’ own due diligence.
After much talk about the resilience of the GCC market in these tough economic times, the recession has finally bitten. The increasing number of corporate defaults, real estate devaluation, credit contraction, et cetera has all contributed to market woes. By Furquan Kidwai.
M&A deals in the Islamic World are down almost 50%. With conventional credit still difficult to obtain in the region, there is an expectation that Sharia-compliant acquisition financing will substitute for the shortfall. Adam Durchslag reports
When Thailand and South Korea were planning to test investor appetite for their respective debut offshore Islamic bonds, the first country they included at the top of their destinations was Malaysia. By Boey Kit Yin.
Indonesia has been taking crucial steps towards establishing itself in the Islamic finance space and while it may have a long way to go before it can match neighbouring Malaysia in this area, this progress bodes well for Islamic finance in the region as a whole. By Nachum Kaplan.
The global race to capture shares of the US$1trn Islamic market has intensified, with Paris, Singapore and Seoul now catching up with London and Kuala Lumpur. Bakyt Azimkanov continues.