The management of Halal certification in Indonesia still falls under the authority of the Indonesian Ulema Council (MUI), according to Sukoso, Head of the Halal Product Guarantee Agency (BPJPH), in a written statement issued on the 16th of October 2020.  Sukoso stressed that according to Article 33 of the new Omnibus Law on Job Creation and the Halal Products Guarantee Law (UU JPH), the MUI was still authorised to determine Halal products, adding that Article 33 of Law 33 of 2014 on the guarantee of Halal products was mana...

Investigating the application of the relationship marketing strategies in Islamic banks and its impact on customer loyaltySales

Legal Aspect for Managing Waqf Assets Through Company Management: Development of Share WaqfIslam, Shariah, Shirkah, Waqf

Malaysian Rating Corporation (MARC) has affirmed its MARC-2IS rating on Titijaya Land’s (Titijaya) MYR 150 million Islamic Commercial Papers Programme, according to a recent statement. As at end-July 2020, the outstanding notes under the programme stood at MYR 70 million.  Titijaya is a Malaysian property developer with several ongoing projects mainly located in the Klang Valley and Sabah, with a combined gross development value of MYR 1.7 billion as at March 2020, according to MARC.  MARC’s rating reflects Titija...

United Arab Emirate-based energy producer, Dana Gas, has announced that it would fully redeem its outstanding USD 309 million Sukuk Mudarabah at the maturity date of 31st of October 2020, using a combination of cash reserves and a new USD 90 million corporate financing facility from Mashreq Bank.  The one-year credit facility from Mashreq Bank is priced at an initial 3% per annum margin over the London Interbank Offered Rate and will be repaid following the planned sale of the company’s Egyptian assets. The credit facilit...

Qatar’s gross domestic product (GDP) at constant prices recorded an estimated 6.1% year-on-year (YoY) decline in the second quarter of 2020 (2Q 2020), according to preliminary estimates by the country’s Planning and Statistics Authority (PSA).  The decline, which was the lowest in eight years, was attributed to the significant hit the economy took during the initial quarantine measures imposed by the COVID-19 pandemic in 2Q 2020, which resulted in several businesses halting operations or reducing daily activities, PSA reported.  The GDP (constant prices...

Brunei has recorded a BND 313.7 million (USD 230.5 million) trade deficit in July 2020, compared to a surplus of BND 251.8 million in the same month a year earlier, according to data released by the country’s Ministry of Finance and Economy on the 15th of October 2020.  This marked an extension of Brunei’s first trade deficit since 2014, which was reported in June 2020. According to media reports, the country’s July 2020 deficit was attributed to a 24.2% year-on-year decline in exports, down to BND 508.5 million in July 2020 from BND 670.8 million r...

Declining foreign exchange reserves have raised concerns amongst officials at Pakistan’s Ministry of Finance (MoF), regarding the planned issuance of Eurobonds or Sukuk that may prove more expansive, or not be possible, unless the USD 6 billion stalled financing facility under the International Monetary Fund (IMF) materialiszes.  Officials at the MoF stated that without this IMF programme, foreign exchange reserves may get depleted at a faster rate, given future debt requirements, particularly in the second half of the current fiscal period. As of the...

Head of Shariah Compliance and Product Development at Al Rayan Bank in the United Kingdom (UK), Dr Samir Alamed is urging Islamic finance institutions (IFIs) in the UK to embrace changing customer demand and speed up the digital transformation of services.  According to Dr Alamed, this is vital if Islamic finance is to be fully embedded within the banking ecosystem in the UK and this will also assist in positioning the UK as a fintech hub.  Dr Alamed explained that IFIs have an immense growth opportunity through digital adoption to cater to not...

Focus Dynamics Centre (FDC) has acquired a 12.19% equity stake in Brahim’s Holdings, a Halal in-flight catering service company for MYR 7.34 million.  FDC is a wholly-owned subsidiary of FOCUS Dynamics Group (FDG), an investment holding company with three segments of operation, manufacturing, engineering services, as well as food and beverage (F&B). In a statement issued to Bursa Malaysia last week, FDG stated that the investment is in line with its strategy to revamp traditional business models using digital technology and modern concepts, in addition to...