23 February 2011
Malaysia's liberalisation of its Islamic finance sector announced by the prime minister in April 2009 seems to be paying dividends with some more international/local Takaful joint ventures due to appear before the end of the year.

The first is AIA AFG Takaful , a venture between AMMB Holdings and Friends Provident. The next is a three-way venture between ING Management Holdings, Public Bank, and Public Islamic. The third is a venture involving The Great Eastern Life Assurance Company and Koperasi Angkatan Tentera Malaysia.

But can the market digest these new entrants? Whilst a growing niche, Takaful is still tiny with a total net value of less than $10bn.

© The Islamic Globe 2011