The Islamic Banking & Investment Asia/Middle East Congress 2016 will bring together the leading players from the Middle East and Asia to explore, engage and showcase both the sectoral and geographic opportunities that are emerging from a wave of increasingly strong attention from mainland China, to new initiatives in Indonesia, as well as high-potential sectors such as marine, energy and the SME market.

4th February 2016, Singapore: Combining a highly innovative and interactive conference format with world-class speakers and more than 250 international delegates who bring their own knowledge of Islamic finance from key markets across the world, The Islamic Banking & Investment Asia/Middle East Congress 2016 features a fresh new approach on how industry leaders can engage with the key issues impacting the future of Islamic finance. The Congress will take place on the 5th & 6th of April 2016 at the Intercontinental Hotel in Singapore, under the theme "Responding to Headwinds & Refreshing the Vision for Islamic Finance", and will be held under the auspices of H.H. Sheikh Salman bin Khalifa Al Khalifa, Special Envoy - Kingdom of Bahrain and Patron of the Islamic Banking & Investment Asia/Middle East Congress 2016.

Experts have projected that an estimated US$ 60bn per year will be required until 2022 to meet the basic infrastructure needs across ASEAN member states alone. The scale of this funding while posing an enormous challenge also presents an exciting opportunity - specifically for Islamic finance. The recent establishment of the Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank (AIIB) provides new impetus to tapping into the growing pool of Islamic investors across the Middle East and Asia as the AIIB seeks to strengthen collaboration with the Islamic Development Bank (IDB) on the use of Sukuk to contribute to the financing of these large-scale infrastructure projects. The Asian Development Bank (ADB) has already been working with the IDB to provide Islamic infrastructure financing solutions and these new developments are projected to significantly spur new growth in the industry. The Congress is delighted to welcome Mr. Ashraf Mohammed, Assistant General Counsel and Practice Leader - Islamic Finance, Asian Development Bank, who will present a keynote address on Harnessing the New Growth Drivers for Islamic Finance: Capitalising on the Large-Scale Infrastructure Opportunity.

The Islamic Banking & Investment Asia/Middle East Congress 2016 also provides a unique opportunity to engage with two prominent leaders in the world of Islamic finance. The Leader's Dialogue Live! keynote interview sessions will present a live onstage and informal one-on-one discussion with a leading player in the global Islamic finance industry. This is a unique opportunity to engage directly with the key issues and gain a fresh perspective and first-hand insights into what we can expect from the Islamic finance industry going forward. We are delighted to confirm Raja Teh Maimunah, the Managing Director/CEO of Hong Leong Islamic Bank Berhad; and Dr. Mahmoud Abdalaal, Chief Executive Officer, aafaq Islamic Finance (UAE), for the Leader's Dialogue Live! sessions on the 5th & 6th April 2016 respectively.

At a recent press gathering, David McLean, President of Ethico Live said that, "We are delighted to launch this exciting new platform with a unique and innovative format combining traditional speaker-driven sessions with highly interactive and forward-looking discussions that blend the perspectives of industry leaders with the out-of-the-box insights of visionary thinkers."

Mr. McLean continued by stating: "The Islamic Banking & Investment Asia/Middle East Congress 2016 will advance industry discussions through new and innovative sessions such as Imagineering the Future, which is a highly innovative session comprising a series of satellite debates featuring "out of the box" forward-looking visionaries from beyond the traditional confines of the Islamic finance industry. This unique session will be curated by Rushdi Siddiqui, an internationally renowned innovator in the global Islamic finance space and will kick-start roundtable discussions. In the interests in capturing fresh new insights, these interactions between audience and panel will be moderated by an expert facilitator and the outputs will be captured via unique infographic representations in real-time. Expect something quite different from the usual conference experience!"

The Islamic Banking & Investment Asia/Middle East Congress 2016 will take place in Singapore at the Intercontinental Hotel on the 5th and 6th of April and will feature some of the most prominent Islamic finance experts from across Asia and the Middle East.

© Press Release 2016