Bahrain - Wednesday 23 December 2012 - The 27th Board of Directors meeting of the International Islamic Financial Market (IIFM) was recently hosted by Kuwait Finance House - Bahrain (KFHB) at their headquarters in Manama, Bahrain.

The meeting was attended by senior representatives of the Bank Indonesia, Central Bank of Bahrain, Central Bank of Sudan, Islamic Development Bank, Autoriti Monetari Brunei Darussalam, Labuan Financial Services Authority - Malaysia, Kuwait Finance House (Bahrain), ABC Islamic Bank, Credit Agricole Corporate & Investment Bank and National Bank of Kuwait.

Mr. Khalid Hamad, IIFM Chairman & Executive Director-Banking Supervision, Central Bank of Bahrain, welcomed the IIFM Board of Directors and thanked them for their foresightedness and guidance which is instrumental in making IIFM's focus on standardized documentation & products for Islamic Capital & Money Market segment of the industry.

Mr. Ijlal Ahmed Alvi, Chief Executive Officer, IIFM thanked the Board of Directors for their support. Mr. Alvi also extended his appreciation to the Central Bank of Bahrain for their continuous support. Also he thanked KFH-Bahrain for hosting this BoD meeting at their headquarters. He stressed on the importance of IIFM market unification efforts particularly in the area of liquidity management and risk mitigation and hoped that these standards will soon be adopted and implemented across the global market. He noted that Islamic finance is becoming one of the key sectors in global finance, thus it is essential to unify certain  aspects and practices of the Islamic finance industry.

The Board of Directors were pleased to note the progress on Interbank Unrestricted Wakalah standard, Islamic Currency Hedging products standards and Collateralized (Rahn) Product Standard. The Board also consented on the initiation of several new standards including Ijarah Sukuk standardization as well as consultation on credit support arrangement concerning Islamic hedging. Moreover, the Board appreciated IIFM industry briefing seminars and workshops which are creating better understanding and awareness on key components of Islamic Capital & Money Markets in various jurisdictions across the globe.

IIFM recently held an industry seminar titled "Islamic Capital Market, Liquidity Management and Risk Mitigation Instruments" which included sessions on various Islamic Capital & Money Market areas such as Sukuk, Inter-Bank Unrestricted Wakalah, Collateralization & Tri-Party arrangements for Islamic Securities, Islamic Hedging and Islamic Real Estate Investment Trusts (iREITS).

Mr. Khalid Hamad along with the Board of Directors thanked Kuwait Finance House - Bahrain for hosting this meeting.

About Kuwait Finance House, Bahrain
Kuwait Finance House-Bahrain is a leading provider of Islamic commercial and investment banking services. Established in 2002 as a wholly owned subsidiary of Kuwait Finance House (Kuwait) -- an industry leader for more than 30 years -- KFH-Bahrain specializes in developing and bringing to market the highest quality Islamic compliant banking and investment products, all of which are delivered by a staff of experienced and dedicated professionals with a deep understanding of the market and the clients we serve.

About International Islamic Financial Market (IIFM)
IIFM is the international Islamic financial market's organization focused on the Islamic Capital & Money Market segment of the Islamic finance industry. Its primary focus lies in the standardization of Islamic financial products, documentation and related processes at the global level.

IIFM was founded with the collective efforts of the Central Bank of Bahrain, Bank Indonesia, Central Bank of Sudan, Labuan Financial Services Authority (Malaysia), Autoriti Monetari Brunei Darussalam and the Islamic Development Bank (a multilateral institution based in Saudi Arabia). 

Besides the founding members, IIFM is supported by its permanent member State Bank of Pakistan. IIFM is further supported by a number of leading regional and international financial institutions as well as other market participants as its members.

The main strength of IIFM is pooling of expertise from banks, legal and other market participants who work together under the guidance of Shari'ah scholars to develop market standard product documentation and processes.

© Press Release 2012