Azentio announces 2025 AAOIFI certication for flagship core banking platform

Azentio Software, a technology enabler in the financial space, has received full certification for 2025 from the Accounting and Auditing Organization for Islamic Financial Institutions (AAOIFI) for its flagship Islamic core banking platform iMAL.

This marks the 16th consecutive year that iMAL has achieved AAOIFI certification. 

"We are pleased to conclude the review of the latest version of iMAL for the year 2025," said Omar Mustafa Ansari, Secretary General of AAOIFI. 

"IMAL's proactive approach to compliance with AAOIFI's Shariah and Financial Accounting Standards, including (the) upcoming FAS 44, 45, 46, and 47, demonstrates its commitment to providing the best shari'ah-compliant solution for customers, thereby enhancing the credibility and trust in the Islamic finance industry. Our partnership with Azentio is a vital pillar in advancing the global Islamic finance industry."

Built specifically for Islamic financial institutions, iMAL is trusted by leading banks across the Middle East, Africa, and Asia to support shari'ah-compliant operations from end to end, including customer onboarding, product structuring, accounting, and reporting. 

Azentio's in-house Shari'ah Compliance Team continuously tracks updates to AAOIFI standards and exposure drafts, ensuring iMAL evolves in lockstep with regulatory shifts and emerging market needs. The latest release of iMAL also includes the new Musaqat product, which is tailored for the Islamic finance sector to meet the needs of the irrigation industry. 

Khaled Berjawi, Senior VP Product Management for iMAL at Azentio said: "In a market where trust and compliance are everything, iMAL stands alone. Our continued AAOIFI certification, uninterrupted for 16 years, is more than a regulatory milestone. It reflects our deep commitment to empowering Islamic financial institutions with cutting-edge technology that is rigorously, verifiably shari'ah-compliant. 

"No other platform can make that claim. We are proud to be at the forefront of Islamic fintech, helping our clients deliver modern, compliant services that scale with demand." 

Azentio digitally transforms Boubyan Bank's customer experience

Boubyan Bank, one of the leading Islamic banks in Kuwait and the GCC region has upgraded Azentio iMAL, marking a major milestone in its digitalisation journey to improve operational efficiency and elevate customer experience. The move has helped elevate customer experience across different channels, helping the bank achieve a 42% improvement in response time.

Azentio iMAL is an AAOIFI-certified Islamic banking platform, designed to empower financial institutions with solutions for retail, corporate, and investment banking. With iMAL, banks can deliver ethical, inclusive, and scalable services, while ensuring compliance with shari'ah principles.

The latest upgrade has empowered Boubyan Bank to overcome key operational challenges, delivering substantial efficiency gains that align with the bank's commitment to innovation and customer-centricity. Aarthi Ramesh, Chief Customer Officer at Azentio said: "Our enduring partnership with Boubyan Bank is a testament to our shared vision of innovative and shari'ah-compliant banking. The recent enhancements to the iMAL core banking system underline Azentio's unwavering commitment to developing solutions that address evolving customer needs and enable excellence in service delivery."

Abdulla AlKhuzam, CIO, Boubyan Bank, commented: "With a 42% improvement in response time, the recent upgrade has revolutionised our operations at Boubyan Bank, allowing us to tackle critical challenges and achieve remarkable efficiency improvements. Our customers will also benefit from the new enhancements including a 52.5% reduction in salary posting time, a 15% boost in CPU efficiency, and an over 80% decrease in database blocking and session times. These advancements have greatly enhanced our system performance, enabling us to better serve our customers and further our mission of delivering top-tier Islamic banking services."

Database blocking refers to blocking new change requests while changes are being made to part of the database so as to prevent conflicts.

Vision Bank takes on Finastra's Islamic banking treasury solution

Vision Bank, a shari'ah-compliant, digital bank in KSA has launched the pilot phase of its banking operations after implementing Finastra Kondor and cloud-based managed services provided by DXC Technology. The implementation contributed to Vision Bank recently obtaining no objection from the Saudi Central Bank and launching the pilot phase of its banking operations.

Finastra's best-of-breed treasury trading system allowed the bank, formerly known as the Saudi Digital Bank, to upgrade its capabilities for asset and liability management, liquidity management, trading and investment, foreign exchange, capital adequacy and reserve management. The deployment of the solution on cloud also aligns with the digital bank's broader strategy of creating better user experiences while keeping pace with new demands.

"Our mission is to be a pioneer in the Saudi banking sector, relying on innovation and technology to provide seamless, shari'ah-compliant banking solutions that meet our customers' needs," said Abdul Shakeel Aidaroos, CEO at Vision Bank. 

"To help us achieve this, we needed a robust treasury management system with cloud-based managed services that enable us to grow while mitigating risks. Finastra and DXC ensure that we can comply with current and upcoming regulations, drive business continuity and maximum availability, and scale the rollout of new products as needed. We are also contributing to the goals of the Financial Sector Development Program, one of the programmes of Saudi Vision 2030."

"Vision Bank's growth ambitions and customer-centric ethos align closely to the values we hold at Finastra," said Wissam Khoury, EVP, Treasury & Capital Markets at Finastra. 

"The implementation of Kondor played a significant role in the bank's launch and digital transformation journey, providing the necessary agility to evolve with new demands and take advantage of the opportunities presented by Saudi Arabia's financial services sector. Working alongside DXC, it has been a pleasure to help Vision Bank reach this milestone and we look forward to its ongoing success."

"DXC is proud to have partnered with Finastra and Vision Bank to successfully deliver Kondor as the bank's fully hosted and managed treasury system," said Anthony Hammond, Global Finastra Lead at DXC. 

"This collaboration underscores our commitment to driving innovation in financial technology, providing a secure, scalable and future-ready solution that enhances the bank's treasury operations."

Webull Securities Malaysia launches Islamic banking channel

Webull Securities Malaysia, a Webull subsidiary, has launched of an Islamic banking channel. This new feature offers local investors the flexibility to choose to fund their Webull trading accounts via an Islamic bank or a conventional bank, making Webull Malaysia the first fully online retail brokerage platform in the country to offer such a service.

The Webull digital investment platform has over 40 M downloads globally. The dual banking gateway provides a flexible currency exchange and deposit system. For those seeking to fund their trading accounts with shari'ah-compliant funding options, this new feature, together with zero deposit fees, interest-free and a profit-sharing based banking facility, will enhance their overall trading experience, Webull Malaysia said.

Webull Malaysia's new Islamic banking channel aims to cater to local investors who are looking to invest in shari'ah-compliant equities and exchange traded funds (ETFs) across both the Malaysian and US stock markets. It complements an existing shari'ah indicator for US stocks and ETFs.

Kenneth Chan, CEO, Webull Malaysia said: "We are proud to be the first fully online retail brokerage platform in Malaysia to offer local investors the flexibility to fund their trading accounts with an Islamic bank. The introduction of the Islamic banking channel, along with improvements to the shari'ah stock screener, enables investors to fund their trading accounts in a way that best aligns with their investment needs and principles. By offering local investors the option to choose between Islamic and conventional bank funding for their Webull accounts, we aim to deliver inclusive, seamless and accessible trading experiences for all investors.

"We are also committed to enhancing the experience of local investors by offering a fully-localised version of the Webull MY trading app. This feature allows users to translate all content - from portfolio displays to the latest local and international news, as well as the educational materials provided - into Bahasa Melayu, ensuring an accessible and tailored experience for our Malaysian users. We are proud to support the needs of Malaysia's investment community and remain committed to developing innovative products that enhance convenience and accessibility for investors."

With the new Islamic banking channel, local investors can choose to fund their trading account with an Islamic bank in Malaysia. Local investors funding their trading account with an Islamic bank will be part of a profit-sharing based banking facility.

FWD Group Holdings makes another investment in FWD Takaful

FWD Group Holdings (FWD) has completed an additional investment for a further 21% stake in FWD Takaful. This makes FWD the majority shareholder in FWD Takaful, with a 70% holding. The remaining 30% is held by the Employees Provident Fund. JAB Capital is no longer a shareholder after the transaction.

"We are delighted to increase our investment in FWD Takaful, after first entering the Malaysian market five years ago. Our commitment to changing the way people feel about takaful in Malaysia is all about building our presence in the local community over the long term," said Binayak Dutta, MD, FWD Group.

FWD Takaful's family takaful product portfolio to customers in Malaysia include term life, critical illness, cancer, hospital cash benefit and medical protection.

"With the continued commitment of FWD Group over the years to its development in Malaysia, we've created a full-service offering to provide both family takaful and life insurance solutions in a rapidly growing market with long-term potential," said Dutta.

Malaysia is the fourth-largest life insurance market by premium in Southeast Asia¹. Insurance penetration² is less than 5% alongside attractive macroeconomic fundamentals and favourable demographics.

FWD Group first entered the Malaysian market in 2019 as a provider of family takaful products with its acquisition of a 49% interest in FWD Takaful. Later that year, FWD Group established its regional technology and innovation hub in Kuala Lumpur, with a focus on delivering best-in-class technology and supporting innovation across the whole company.

In 2023, FWD Group created a full-service offering in Malaysia, featuring both family takaful and life insurance solutions with its establishment of FWD Insurance. This followed the completion of the company's investment, together with other investors, in the business formerly known as Gibraltar BSN, on 3 April 2023.

The Southeast Asia region is strategically important for FWD Group, with more than half of its value of new business³ contributed by its operations in the region. FWD Group is a top five insurer and top bancassurer within its Southeast Asia markets, on an annual premium equivalent⁴ basis.

1 NMG; Swiss Re

2 NMG

3 For the six months ended 30 June 2023

4 For the nine months ended 30 September 2023

Islamic Development Bank presents new branding

The Islamic Development Bank (IsDB) has unveiled a new brand identity that reflects its modern values, strategic direction and relationship with its 57-member countries, its first change in its 40+ year history. The new brand identity maintains the core elements of the IsDB’s heritage while signalling modernity, independence and transparency, future proofing the bank’s identity and evolving it for an international audience.

Source: Islamic Development Bank.
The new logo.

The change reflects the reforms that the KSA-based Islamic Development Bank, one of the world’s largest multilateral development banks, has been undergoing in the last year. The bank’s new President, HE Dr Bandar Hajjar, formerly KSA Minister of Hajj, is reimagining the traditional role of a development bank, making the organisation more globally-facing, placing partnerships, technology and innovation, and global engagement at the heart of his modernising programme.

"The Islamic Development Bank has been a symbol of trust, credibility, strength and stability for over 44 years, with a proud heritage of providing resources, fighting poverty and restoring dignity in our member countries. As we build on the successes of the past, we must also look to the future. I believe that this new brand identity is one of a world class institution – tackling the challenges of today’s modern world,” he said.

The globe at the heart of the logo demonstrates the network of 57-member nations, across four continents that the IsDB represent. It reflects the IsDB’s global outlook and status as a world leading international organisation.

The dots within the globe represent the IsDB’s new operating model, becoming a bank of development and developers, whose role is to connect organisations together, acting as a catalyst and facilitator. The dots also represent infrastructure and science, technology and innovation, which are at the heart the IsDB’s strategic direction, as they are crucial for the economic evolution of member nations. 

 
The semi-circle, inspired by the dome of a qubba (قُبَّة, an Arabic tomb), is a reference to the Islamic identity of our member nations. It also represents the sun rising, and a new dawn for the Bank.

The unfinished nature of symbol represents dynamism and progression, as it builds upon the achievements of the last 44 years, and looks to the future, with new partners, new members, new ideas, as it adds pieces of the puzzle.

The rich green to blue colour represents sustainability, progression, growth and our planet, as well as the bank’s Islamic heritage.

The IsDB abbreviation can be used alone, or alongside the full name of the Bank, adaptable for use in all three languages – Arabic, English and French.

The IsDB’s mission, as it enters its next stage of growth, includes equipping people to drive their own economic and social progress at scale; putting the necessary infrastructure in place to enable them to fulfil their potential; building collaborative partnerships between public and private sectors; and championing the latest science, technology and innovation led solutions to the UN Sustainable Development Goals.

Dr Hayat Sindi, Scientific Advisor to the President and General Supervisor of Communications and External Relations for the Islamic Development Bank, said: “This is a significant moment in our organisation’s history. It is a new identity for the next generation of the IsDB, putting our vision at the heart of our brand, harnessing the achievements of our past, as we build towards the future.”

The Islamic Development Bank has also launched a new website to coincide with their new brand identify and future vision.

Alizz Islamic Bank takes on VR in marketing campaigns

Alizz Islamic Bank has announced that it is the first bank in Oman to utilise virtual reality (VR) and gamification to market the brand and its products. The bank said it had successfully raised the profile of its brand and marketing techniques using VR have delivered phenomenal results.

Source: Alizz Islamic Bank. VR
in marketing campaigns have yielded
good results.

Murtadha Al Lawati, Head of Marketing & Corporate Communications said, "Alizz Islamic Bank is proud to be at the forefront of digital tool adoption. As people rely more and more on digital technology to absorb information and communicate, it is crucial that we as an organisation embrace digital strategies in marketing. VR activations enable us to engage with customers more efficiently and with greater precision. Using VR to promote the plethora of Alizz Islamic Bank shari'ah-compliant products such as the Bushra Prize Savings account and credit cards empowers the customer to learn about the product features in a fun yet informative manner."

Al Lawati added, "The idea behind a digital transformation is just that – to go digital. But the transformation shouldn't end at the product level. Communication methods are also changing, with people engaging companies more through non-traditional, more immediate digital channels. It is no secret that VR is the future for all industries and for us as early adopters, the best way to promote services and quickly interact with customers is through the most convenient outlet and it's highly likely that it is via VR."


Alizz Islamic Bank was the first Omani bank to launch interactive teller machines (ITMs), the first bank in the Sultanate to launch a shari'ah-compliant prize savings account, the first Islamic bank in Oman to launch a shari'ah-compliant credit card, the first Islamic bank in Oman to launch a mobile banking application and are currently the most-followed Islamic bank in Oman on all social media platforms.

TSYS and Mashreq Bank announce successful implementation of PRIME for acquiring services

Mashreq Bank, a full service financial institution that offers conventional as well as shari'ah compliant solutions, has successfully implemented global payments provider TSYS’ PRIME software licensing solution.

TSYS is providing Mashreq with its core PRIME acquirer and issuer payments platform plus surrounding modules and services. The solution enables Mashreq to manage its merchant relationships, and enable fast merchant onboarding. Additional solutions implemented during phase one, included PRIME Fraudguard to protect cardholders against fraud, PRIME Dispute Manager to efficiently manage transaction disputes for fast resolution, and TSYS InterActiv Interchange Pricing to allow Mashreq to better manage its merchant portfolio with respect to interchange and related costs.

The first phase of the implementation followed industry best practices across planning, development and solution design, resulting in the successful launch of acquiring services within eight months of the contract-signing. The second phase of the project — to include PRIME’s issuing solutions — will be deployed later this year.

“We at Mashreq are delighted to partner with TSYS for our acquiring platform as the system offers more flexibility and scalability to our merchant business. The joint efforts led to the project being executed seamlessly and at an extraordinary pace. We are looking forward for more collaboration with TSYS in phase II to serve our customers better using the PRIME platform,” said Pankaj Kundra, Head of Payment, Mashreq Bank.

In addition to implementing PRIME’s issuing solutions later this year, the final phase of the project will also focus on Mashreq’s multichannel acquiring with support for payment gateways for e-commerce, merchant portals with dashboard reporting, dynamic currency conversion and payment acceptance support for all major payment schemes. Mashreq will also consolidate and manage its card issuance with PRIME across multiple countries, beginning with UAE, and followed by Kuwait, Bahrain, Egypt and Qatar.

“We’ve established a great partnership with Mashreq, which provides the foundation of success. Together, we implemented the PRIME platform and we’re able to provide a solution designed to support their customer communication and ever-evolving payment needs,” said Rene Kruse, Group Executive and MD, International Markets, TSYS.

Mashreq is the oldest privately held bank in the UAE. Today, Mashreq has a significant presence in 11 countries outside the UAE with 21 overseas branches and offices across Europe, the US, Asia and Africa.

Noor Bank becomes FCI associate member

Noor Bank, a shari’ah-compliant bank in the UAE, is the first Islamic bank to have successfully obtained associate membership of FCI, a global representative of the factoring* and receivables finance industry.

The membership will enable Noor Bank to leverage the FCI network in more than 90 countries to offer export and import factoring facilities to clients in the UAE.

As an associate member, Noor Bank will have instant access to standardised procedures using a state-of-the-art communications system and arbitration services. This is in addition to the broad range of educational products, including e-learning, regional seminars and tailormade training that will be made available. Noor Bank will also receive full access to statistics, studies, presentations and other useful information from the private library of the FCI website.

FCI formed a working committee comprising Noor Bank, International Islamic Trade Finance Corporation and Dar Al Tawreeq to develop shari’ah-compliant documents enabling global Islamic finance institutions to apply for membership.

Speaking of the affiliation to FCI, Ehsaan Ahmed, Head of Global Transaction Services & Corporate Strategy, Noor Bank, said: “We are pleased to have received this membership, which demonstrates our continued emphasis on offering new and improved services to our customers. As a leading shari’ah-compliant bank, we are equally proud of being part of the working committee that crafted the standard framework in order to facilitate Islamic banks in the UAE to apply for membership. As an associate member of FCI, we look forward to networking with factoring industry professionals across the world at our regular meetings.”

Peter Mulroy, Secretary General, FCI, said: “We are very happy to have Noor Bank joining FCI as associate member. After their active participation in the working group to adapt the FCI GRIF to International Islamic Factoring, it shows the development of factoring in the Middle East. With this membership, I can sense the winds of change blowing in the MEA region, that had in 2016 less than 0.3% of global factoring volume.”

Established in 1968, FCI is an umbrella organisation for independent factoring companies around the world. With more than 400 member companies worldwide, FCI offers a unique network for cooperation in cross-border factoring.

*Factoring refers to the sale of debts or invoices to a third party, called a factor.  The factor buys the debt or invoice at a discount, thus earning some profit on the recovery of the amount. The seller typically gets a downpayment on the value of the debt or invoice, and the remainder of the payment when the funds are paid.

National Bank of Fujairah is the first conventional bank to join Nasdaq Dubai Murabaha Platform

Source: Nasdaq Dubai. NBF is the first conventional bank to join Nasdaq Dubai Murabaha Platform.

National Bank of Fujairah (NBF) is the first conventional bank to join Nasdaq Dubai’s Islamic financing murabahah platform, which offers unique advantages to financial institutions and clients seeking shari’ah-compliant solutions and trading opportunities.The bank rolled out its shari’ah-compliant NBF Islamic in 2014 and has recently expanded its activities to include more shari’ah-compliant services.

The bank’s strategic priorities focus on developing NBF Islamic into a full-fledged proposition encompassing a comprehensive range of solutions for both retail and corporate banking segments. The Nasdaq Dubai Murabaha Platform will play a key role for NBF in facilitating Islamic financing transactions in an efficient and streamlined manner.

Vince Cook, CEO, NBF, said:  “We are very excited about joining the Nasdaq Dubai Murabaha Platform; the move underlines our commitment to offering reliable and efficient Islamic finance services to our clients. The innovative platform complements our existing offerings as we seek to fulfil our clients’ growing needs in this space. It enables our clients to conduct transactions quickly and efficiently at a fixed cost and in a transparent manner – all within an environment that provides the certainty of shari’ah compliance.”

Hamed Ali, Chief Executive of Nasdaq Dubai, said:  “As a prominent UAE financial institution dedicated to supporting businesses and individuals, National Bank of Fujairah is an important addition to our Murabaha platform.  Our collaboration reflects the increasing participation of conventional financial institutions in the field of Islamic finance and as the market grows, Nasdaq Dubai will attract more conventional as well as Islamic financial institutions to participate on it, both regionally and internationally.”

The Nasdaq Dubai Murabaha Platform can provide significant cost savings and a reduction in processing time for its participants, and is playing a growing role in Dubai’s expansion as the global capital of the Islamic economy.

Since its launch in 2014, over US$76 billion worth of transactions have been executed through the platform. Transactions valued at US$26 billion have taken place so far in 2017, up 18% from US$22.1 billion in the same period last year.

Bank of Tokyo-Mitsubishi UFJ Malaysia gets AAA(bg)/Stable rating on sukuk wakalah

RAM Ratings has reaffirmed the AAA(bg)/Stable rating of the securities issued under Bank of Tokyo-Mitsubishi UFJ Malaysia (BTMU Malaysia) for a US$500 million Multi-Currency Sukuk Wakalah Bi Al-Istithmar Programme.

BTMU Malaysia is wholly owned by The Bank of Tokyo-Mitsubishi UFJ, itself rated AAA/Stable/P1 by RAM. Both belong to the Mitsubishi UFJ Financial Group (MUFG) - one of the world’s largest banking groups and also Japan’s leading banking group. The enhanced issue rating reflects the irrevocable and unconditional guarantee extended by BTMU on the sukuk wakalah issued under the programme, RAM Ratings said.

"The bank and its parent constitute part of the BTMU Malaysia’s ratings benefit from a strong likelihood of support from its parent. The ratings also reflect its robust capitalisation, superior loan quality and stable income-generating capacity," said RAM in a statement.

BTMU Malaysia’s loan base expanded 9% in the 15-month fiscal period ended 31 March 2017; the Bank recently changed its financial year-end from 31 December to 31 March. BTMU Malaysia’s loan portfolio is of superior quality as a result of its focus on the Malaysian-domiciled entities owned by established Japanese conglomerates, multinationals and highly-rated domestic names, RAM Ratings notes.

Bank AlJazira adopts Blockchain fraud prevention solution

ShoCard, systems integrator Ateon and KSA Islamic bank Bank AlJazira are working to launch a first-of-its-kind fraud prevention platform using ShoCard's Blockchain-based identity management solution and SettleMint's know your customer (KYC) technology.

Expected benefits of the system once deployed include:

• Reduced cost and duplication for identity management 
• Reduced fraud, as a borrower can no longer take a loan against the same asset from multiple banks 
• Allowance for the exchange of customer information such as data on wire transfers and investigatory reports
• Improved management of anti-money laundering (AML) 
• Improved customer satisfaction

ShoCard has an open-patent portfolio with technology that can be used for password-less login. As user credentials are not stored on any computer, no personal or financial data is exchanged during transactions, eliminating data and identity theft and resulting in fast, trusted authentications.

Meezan Bank modernises IT infrastructure with VMware

Source: VMware. From left: Ahsan Khan, Country Sales Lead, VMware Pakistan and Afghanistan; Adrian Hia, GM, Nascent Markets & Vietnam; David Hale, US Ambassador to Pakistan; Abdul Rauf, EVP, IT Infrastructure, Meezan Bank; Raheem Eqbal, COO, New Horizon, Safder Merchant, Head, Commercial & Partners, Nascent Markets, VMware; Qaiser Sarwar, GM, Sales and Operations, New Horizon. 

VMware, a global player in cloud infrastructure and business mobility, has signed an agreement with Meezan Bank, Pakistan’s first and largest Islamic bank, to modernise the bank’s IT infrastructure across 571 branches in 146 cities of Pakistan. The agreement allows Meezan Bank to be expand into larger market segments and meet its growing business demands through IT.

Under the agreement, Meezan Bank can tap on VMware’s industry leading platforms to build and deliver IT solutions. With the modernised IT infrastructure enabled by a suite of VMware solutions including VMware vSphere with Operations Management, VMware vCloud Suite and VMware Site Recovery Manager, the bank aims to increase the performance and efficiency of the IT resources through virtualisation, speed up the delivery of solutions via private clouds, and strengthen the availability and mobility of critical applications.

“This is just one of the many steps Meezan Bank will be taking to play its part to support the State Bank of Pakistan’s efforts to make Pakistan’s financial sector a digital leader in the decade ahead and to maintain Pakistan’s position as a mobile-first nation,” said Faizur Rehman, Head of Information Technology and Digital Banking, Meezan Bank.

The partnership with VMware also means that the bank is now able to scale rapidly based on demand and significantly reduce its operational and ownership costs. With VMware’s consumer simple yet enterprise secure solutions, Meezan Bank’s modernised IT infrastructure allows the bank to respond faster to customer needs while elevating the security and reliability of its services across 571 branches.

“Meezan Bank is a key stakeholder in Pakistan’s commendable journey of digital transformation. The bank recognises how IT is able to not only create tangible business benefits, but new business opportunities as well,” said Adrian Hia, GM, Nascent Markets & Vietnam, VMware.                               
Meezan Bank is the 8th largest bank in Pakistan and the only Islamic bank with an AA credit rating in the Islamic banking industry in Pakistan. The bank provides a comprehensive range of Islamic banking products and services through a retail banking network of more than 570  branches, supported by a countrywide network of over 560 ATMs, Visa and MasterCard debit cards, a 24x7 call centre, Internet banking and mobile banking facility.

Meezan Bank has consistently been recognised as the Best Islamic Bank in Pakistan by numerous local and international institutions, including the South Asian Federation of Accountants, Islamic Finance Forum of South Asian Awards, the Employers Federation of Pakistan and CFA Association - Pakistan.

Bank Islam partners with Cognizant for digital Islamic banking

Bank Islam Malaysia today announced a strategic collaboration with Cognizant, a global business and technology consulting firm, to lay the foundation of digital banking across the Bank’s entire network. 

The agreement was signed by Khairul Kamarudin, CEO, Bank Islam, and Effendi Azmi Hashim, Malaysia Business Leader, Cognizant, in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. "Bank Islam will continue applying digital technology to our products and services, bringing greater accessibility to our customers, as well as simplifying and improving their banking experience with us,” said Khairul.

By capitalising on digital technologies, Bank Islam will be able to transform Islamic banking as envisioned by Bank Negara Malaysia. Cognizant’s Head of Asia-Pacific, Jayajyoti Sengupta said: “For banks of the new digital economy, leadership is about delivering hyper-personalised products, services, and experiences to customers across channels by continually turning digital data into actionable insights. We are proud to be a part of Bank Islam’s vision to transform itself into a digitally-led bank of the future.

“By leveraging our extensive consulting and digital banking capabilities, we look forward to creating a business, operating and technology roadmap for Bank Islam to realise the full promise of digital in driving greater customer satisfaction and differentiated growth. The opportunity to partner with a leading financial services institution such as Bank Islam marks an important milestone in our growth journey in Malaysia.”

Bank Islam has always strived to design innovative solutions to transform customer experience. By partnering with Cognizant to build a digital bank, the bank is taking a big leap into the future to deliver innovative solutions to small and medium sized enterprises and customers across country, and integrate them seamlessly into the developing digital economy in Malaysia. 

Digitalisation will help Bank Islam accelerate SME banking by providing business solutions for their operational as well as expansion needs. It will enable the bank to rapidly tap the rural, underbanked segments and boost financial inclusion by overcoming cost and physical barriers. Bank Islam will be able to combine its energy, continuous innovation and imagination of fintech startups with its solid balance sheet, trust, customer service and banking expertise. 

Bank Islam Malaysia was established in 1983 as the nation’s first Islamic bank. To date, the bank has a network of 147 branches and more than 1,200 self-service terminals nationwide. To meet the diversity of the public’s financial needs, Bank Islam offers more than 70 shari'ah-based banking products and services.

Alizz Islamic Bank launches revamped mobile app for Internet banking

Source: Alizz Islamic Bank. The app.

Alizz Islamic Bank has launched a newly-redesigned mobile banking app and Internet banking platform in line with its expanding role as a leader of customer experience in Oman. The bank was the first full-fledged Islamic bank to offer a mobile banking app in Oman.

The bilingual app is available for both Android and iOS devices and features advanced security capabilities as well as a self-registration system. Users can use a QR code to log in to web banking, funds transfers, utility bill payments and other transactions. The app is 3D Touch-enabled* and is the first mobile banking app in Oman to offer in app notifications for new transactions, and payment reminders.

Sadiq Al Lawati, Head of Digital and Card Business, Alizz Islamic Bank said, "At Alizz Islamic Bank our key focus is to provide the very best digital banking experience for our customers, whenever and wherever our customers need. Throughout the bank's history we have been at the forefront of digital banking in Oman and we are delighted to further reinforce this with the multitude of useful features offered to our customers via the Alizz mobile banking app and Internet banking platforms, which are available in both Arabic and English."

Source: Alizz Islamic Bank. Al Jadidi.

Moosa Al Jadidi, COO, Alizz Islamic Bank said the new mobile banking application and Internet banking platform reflect the exceptional customer experience and high standards that the bank strives to deliver every day.

"These platforms enhance our strong relationship with our customers and take our excellence in customer service to a whole new level. With an increasingly young population in Oman who prefer more technologically advanced banking solutions, our wide range of cutting edge digital banking solutions enable our customers to benefit from more convenient and secure self-service channels, 24 hours a day, 7 days a week," he said.

*3D Touch is pressure-sensitive touch technology found in iOS devices.

Alizz Islamic Bank enhances Bushra savings account

Reaffirming its leading role in providing innovative shari'ah-compliant services and products Alizz Islamic Bank has enhanced the incentives of the Bushra savings account and other accounts.

Amongst the benefits are instant issuance of the debit card within minutes of opening the account, and discounts at a number of retail and dining outlets across the Sultanate. Bushra Prize Savings Account customers also receive expected profit on their savings and the chance to enter the draws. The profit is given out on monthly basis while the draws occur regularly - daily, weekly, monthly, quarterly and annually.

Source: Alizz Islamic Bank. Al Jadidi.

The daily draw has a total prize value of RO500 distributed equally among five winners, while the weekly draw has the total value of RO3,000, divided equally among three winners. The monthly draw is worth RO25,000 to one winner and the quarterly draw is for RO50,000, also to one winner. The grand prize is worth RO100,000, for a single winner. All of the cash prizes are hiba (هبة gifts) from the shareholder's funds and all customers with a minimum balance of RO100 in their Bushra accounts are eligible for the draws.

The Bushra savings account is based on the shari'ah principle of mudarabah, whereby the bank invests customer savings in shari'ah-compliant financing in order to generate the best possible returns and profits. The customer acts as a capital provider while the bank takes up the role of mudarib (مضارب) or entrepreneur. All customer funds along with the bank's own capital will be pooled and invested in shari'ah-compliant modes of investment and the resulting profit is shared between the bank and the customer according to predetermined ratios.

Moosa Al Jadidi, COO, Alizz Islamic Bank, said: "The launch of the Bushra prize savings account comes as part of our plans to provide a wide range of carefully-designed financial products that meet all clients' needs. Thanks to the efforts of our team, we have been able to provide more than 24 shari'ah-compliant financial products so far.

"This account gives clients the ability to increase their wealth. We aim to provide our clients with low-risk high-yield investment and savings solutions, and we ensure that meeting all their needs, with utmost transparency, is made priority."

Emirates Islamic adopts Blockchain to secure cheques

Emirates Islamic, an Islamic financial institution in the UAE, said it will introduce Blockchain technology into its cheques as a fraud prevention measure.

Termed Cheque Chain, Emirates Islamic is the first Islamic bank in UAE to undertake this initiative to enhance security in the popular payment method. Emirates Islamic will issue new cheque books carrying a unique QR code on every leaf, along with a string of 20 random characters.

“Blockchain has the potential to significantly increase security and protection in banking transactions and we are delighted to be among the first in the UAE to utilise this new technology,” said Suhail Bin Tarraf, COO, Emirates Islamic. “We anticipate that Cheque Chain will dramatically reduce cheque frauds in this market helping us provide our customers greater peace of mind and security.

“Emirates Islamic is making deeper investments in digital technologies to enhance and improve the banking experience, as part of our commitment to support the vision of HH Sheikh Mohammed Bin Rashid Al Maktoum, VP and PM of UAE and Ruler of Dubai in making Dubai the global capital of Islamic economy. We are confident that our efforts will be well received by our customers and partners.”

In the next phase of the Cheque Chain project, the bank will have each cheque leaf registered on the Bank’s Blockchain platform, enabling it to validate the authenticity of the cheque at source.

Emirates Islamic presents 2017 investment outlook

Source: Emirates Islamic. Jamal (left) and Dugan (right).

Emirates Islamic, a UAE-based Islamic financial institution has shared the investment outlook for 2017 with its wealth management clients in Abu Dhabi and Dubai.

Presented by Gary Dugan, Chief Investment Officer (CIO) for Emirates NBD, Dealing with Global Disruptors - Investment Outlook for 2017 detailed disruptions to the global economy in the last year which have created challenges to conventional wisdom. Citing events such as Brexit, US President Donald Trump’s victory, the rise of Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi and the launch of the Tesla car as global disruptors, Dugan said: “These political and technological events were major surprises to global financial markets, and have triggered significant shifts in the valuations of currencies and asset classes. More importantly, they have forced investors around the globe to rethink their long-term investment strategies.”

Explaining that the disruptions to conventional wisdom would most likely continue through 2017, Dugan advised, "Given the ongoing volatile global economic and political environment, it is important to invest in countries and sectors that offer long term growth and value. We believe for example, that sectors like technology and healthcare and countries like India offer relative value in current environment. As a general principle, investments should focus on preserving capital, while at the same time achieving reasonable profit levels.”

“Gold continues to play an important role for us. The yellow metal price has continued to deliver returns and remains a key diversification component for investment portfolios,” he added.

The investment outlook event was in keeping with Emirates Islamic’s vision to be a leading Islamic bank in the region. The bank has continued to build on its long-term relationship with customers, through a ‘customer first’ approach, which focuses on personalised financial services.

Jamal Bin Ghalaita, CEO, Emirates Islamic said: “Wealth management is one of the key pillars of the banking proposition at Emirates Islamic, and we aim to provide personalised wealth advisory services to our clients through a comprehensive platform, backed by in-depth knowledge in Islamic finance and extensive expertise in local and regional investments. The continued collaboration with global Islamic finance solutions providers also empowers Emirates Islamic to provide additional value to clients, and enables us to move closer to our goal of becoming the preferred provider of shari’ah-compliant wealth management solutions in the region.”

Interested?

Read the Suroor Asia blog post about the shari'ah standard for gold

Alizz Islamic Bank introduces shari'ah-compliant home financing options

Alizz Islamic Bank, one of the pioneering Islamic banks in Oman, has launched a new shari'ah-based solution to owning a home.

The new home financing product is based on the diminishing musharakah (المشاركة المتناقصة) contract, which refers to a joint partnership contract between the financier and its client. The bank had previously launched products using other financing modes, such as ijarah ( إجارة) and forward ijarah (الإجارة الموصوفة في الذمة).

Musharakah literally means partnership. Under the partnership financing mode, the financial institution and its client jointly own a property. The bank’s share of the property is divided into a number of units, and the client will purchase the units of the bank’s share one by one until the client owns the whole property. It is an option that is based on the principle of partnership between two parties where the bank and the client jointly purchase and acquire the property the client chooses.

Both parties may register the asset’s title under their names together or under the name of one of them as per the agreement.

“This product is designed in an innovative and modern way to satisfy the needs of different clients. The minimum age of the applicant should be 22 years, but is 18 years for public sector employees. The minimum salary requirement is OMR350. The settlement term can be up to 25 years with maximum financing of 80% of the property value or OMR450,000,” said Mohamoud Barre Dualeh, Head of Product Development, Alizz Islamic Bank.

The client must give an undertaking to purchase the bank’s share before the bank signs the original purchase agreement, he stressed. Then the bank and the client will jointly purchase the property from the original owner. The bank also grants the client a permission to lease as well if the client wants to rent out the property.

Under ijarah muntahia bittamleek, which literally translates to “lease ending with ownership transfer”, Alizz Islamic Bank buys the property from the seller and leases it out to the customer with a promise to sell it at the end of the lease term. 

Another shari'ah-compliant option is forward ijarah home finance in which Alizz Islamic Bank, in its capacity as lessor, constructs the property at the customer’s request and leases it out to the customer after the completion of construction for a certain period of time and against a rental amount. Once the customer has met all obligations under the forward ijarah contract, the bank will transfer the ownership of the property to the customer. The forward ijarah option is also available for properties under construction.

Both options are open to Omani nationals and resident expatriates, whether salaried or self-employed, and require simple documentation with fast and easy approval processes. Financing is available for up to 25 years and 80% of the property value. The maximum financing option is again OMR450,000 while the minimum salary required is OMR300 for government employees and OMR350 for private sector employees.

“Ijarah and forward ijarah home finance options offer customers shari'ah-based solutions to realise their dream of owning a home. Both options come with a host of benefits and features to Omani nationals and resident expatriates at competitive rates with easy documentation and fast approval process,” commented Mohamoud Dualeh.

Dar Al Sharia wins Mohammed Bin Rashid Al Maktoum Business Innovation Award

Source: DIB. The Group CEO of DIB, Dr Adnan Chilwan received
the award from HH Sheikh Maktoum bin Mohammed bin Rashid
Al Maktoum, Deputy Ruler of Dubai, on behalf of Dar Al Sharia.

Dar Al Sharia, a subsidiary of Dubai Islamic Bank (DIB) that offers Islamic finance advisory and consultancy services, has won the Mohammed Bin Rashid Al Maktoum Business Innovation Award. 

Launched by the Dubai Chamber of Commerce and Industry in cooperation with the UAE Ministry of Economy, the Mohammed Bin Rashid Al Maktoum Business Innovation Award is the nation’s highest level of recognition for companies who deploy outstanding, innovation-driven strategies and business practices. The inaugural cycle of the award has resulted in the adoption of new technological advancements as part of the core strategic agenda among businesses in the UAE and the wider GCC region. 

Dr Adnan Chilwan, Group CEO, DIB said, “Innovation, a critical element for progress, is largely driven by the leadership’s stance and there is no better example in the world for technological advancement and continuous innovation than the leadership of Dubai. Over the years, this has permeated down to the public and private sector entities across all economic segments within the emirate.

“Ultimately, it is all about ‘making life easier’. We, at DIB, are committed to not just innovate, develop, and progress Islamic finance globally, but also to make it a convenient, hassle free and comprehensive model for corporate and retail customers to manage their financial needs. And it is this commitment to innovation that has been the driving force behind our success.”

Mian Muhammad Nazir, Head of Dar Al Sharia, said: “The key to Dar Al Sharia’s success has been our dedication to ongoing innovation and further developing services that strengthen and expand the global Islamic finance market. Supported by the largest Islamic bank in the UAE, this award is testament to Dar Al Sharia’s commitment to developing products and services for businesses and consumers within the region and beyond.”

The achievements further strengthen Dar Al Sharia’s position as a leading provider of Islamic finance consultancy and advisory services.