House of Lords event brings together parliamentarians and industry practitioners to discuss the future of Islamic finance in the UK
International legal practice Norton Rose LLP held its annual Islamic finance event yesterday led by Farmida Bi, European head of Islamic finance, and hosted in the House of Lords by Lord Sheikh. The event was attended by more than 100 leading experts in the Islamic finance industry including representatives from Islamic and conventional banks. It was also attended by Lord Sassoon, the Commercial Secretary to the Treasury and the minister responsible for Islamic finance, as well as MPs and Peers from all parties. (source)
Farmida Bi, European Head of Islamic Finance at Norton Rose LLP, said, “Islamic finance can serve as an engine of growth for the UK economy. It can provide much needed revenue and investment at a time when conventional liquidity is in short supply. In the current economic climate, there is merit in exploring alternative forms of funding, and harnessing Islamic finance could be a source of enormous benefit to the UK as a whole. In particular, the launch of an Islamic sovereign bond by the UK would galvanise the market and cement London’s position as the hub of Islamic finance in the West.”
Lord Sassoon, Commercial Secretary to the Treasury, said: “A key feature of London’s development as the gateway for Islamic finance into Western Europe has been our commitment to policies that will help create a level playing field for both retail and wholesale Islamic finance. This has resulted in the UK becoming the number one jurisdiction in the western world in terms of sharia compliant assets. However, we recognise that there is more work to be done. We are committed to working with the industry and we are currently undergoing consultation on variable rate Murabahas and Islamic derivatives.”
The host of the event, Lord Sheikh, added, “In recent years we have seen significant growth in Islamic finance, and Islamic finance has also been less affected by the global financial crisis than conventional finance. Our goal is to ensure a level playing field for Shariah compliant products which will allow Islamic finance to flourish and thus help the entire UK economy to grow.”
Raza Anjum and Jeffrey Anderson at Norton Rose LLP provided support in arranging the event.
For further information please contact:
Jane Lougher, PR Manager, Norton Rose LLPTel: 44 (0)20 7444 2063 Mob +44 (0)7595 886 200
jane.lougher@nortonrose.com
jane.lougher@nortonrose.com
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