| 03 Dec 2007 |
|
Ajman soon to see its first bank being set up To be the eighth Islamic bank in the UAE
- Text size
Even as Noor Bank is being set up as the region's largest Islamic bank in terms of share capital at $1 billion, Ajman is all set to see its first national bank in the form of another Islamic bank - most likely named as Ajman Islamic Bank, banking sources said.
Though the details of the bank are not yet available to The Business Weekly, sources said, the bank, slated to be the eighth Islamic bank in the country and the first bank headquartered in Ajman, is likely to have a paid-up capital of Dh500 million.
According to banking sources, UAE may see a few other Islamic banks also being set up in the country in the short to medium term. The latest in the series of Islamic bank to be licensed is Al Hilal Bank being set up in Abu Dhabi.
Though the UAE saw five Islamic banks - both converted and newly set up - 'opening shop' in a span of about five years, there is still pending demand for sharia'a-compliant solutions and offerings in the region. According to an S&P estimate, against a demand of offerings worth $3 trillion to $4 trillion, the Islamic institutions the world over have been able to offer only products worth $750 billion.
Until 2001, UAE's Islamic banking needs were met by two banks, Dubai Islamic Bank (DIB) and Abu Dhabi Islamic Bank (ADIB), both basically promoted by the respective governments of Dubai and Abu Dhabi.
It was in 2001, National Bank of Sharjah (NBS) announced its plans to convert itself into an Islamic bank. When NBS transformed into Sharjah Islamic Bank, the financial world witnessed the first conversion of a conventional bank into a sharia'a-compliant institution.
This was followed by Emirates Bank Group taking the decision to convert its subsidiary conventional bank - Middle East Bank into an Islamic bank. Thus MEB became Emirates Islamic Bank (EIB) and started operations in 2004.
Though Dubai Bank was established by Emaar Properties in 2002, before long, 70 per cent ownership in the bank was sold to Dubai Holding, which decided to convert the bank into an Islamic bank in 2005.
It was during the current year, two more banks were given fresh licence to establish as Islamic banks, one in Dubai and another in Abu Dhabi. While Dubai Holding along with other investors set up Noor Bank, the Abu Dhabi counterparts decided to float Al Hilal Bank or Crescent Bank, which will soon start its operations.
Amit Chettupuzha
Zawya is a distributor (and not a publisher) of content supplied by third parties and subscribers. Any opinions, advice, statements, services, offers, or other information or content expressed or made available by those third parties, including information providers, subscribers or other users of the Service, are those of the respective author(s) or distributor(s) and not of the Company. The Company neither endorses nor is responsible for the accuracy or reliability of any opinion, advice or statement made on the Service by anyone other than authorized Service employee spokespersons while acting in their official capacities. The Company is not responsible for any infringement of intellectual property rights or breach of any applicable law or regulation, including regulation in relation to financial services or the distribution of financial products, defamation, data protection, telecommunications (including regulations relating to excessive use, spamming or other abusive activities) or obscene, offensive or illegal content). Under no circumstances will the Company be liable for any loss or damage caused by a member's reliance on information obtained through the Service. It is the responsibility of member to evaluate the accuracy, completeness or usefulness of any information, opinion, advice or other content available through the Service. Please seek the advice of professionals, as appropriate, regarding the evaluation of any specific information, opinion, advice or other content.
Read the full Member Agreement
http://www.zawya.com/legal/NewsLetter.cfm?name=disclaimer
Post a Comment
1.1 Contain any material which is libelous or defamatory of any person, is obscene, offensive, hateful or inflammatory or causes damage to the reputation of any person or organisation.
1.2 Promote sexually explicit material, violence, discrimination based on race, sex, religion, nationality, disability, sexual orientation or age or any illegal activity.
1.3 Be made in breach of any legal duty owed to a third party, such as a contractual duty or a duty of confidence.
1.4 Be threatening, abuse or invade another's privacy, or cause annoyance, inconvenience or needless anxiety.
1.5 Be used to impersonate any person, to misrepresent your identity or affiliation with any person, or be likely to deceive any person.
1.6 Give the impression that they represent Zawya.
1.7 Advocate, promote or assist any unlawful act such as (by way of example only) copyright infringement or computer misuse.