FRANCE - EVENTS - DUBAI - Europlace Financial Forum - Dec 15, 2010

UK - Islamic IFA calls for overhaul of UK banks

The UK banking system needs a "paradigm shift" to tackle unhelpful regulations and vested interests, an Islamic financial adviser has claimed.

Tarek El Diwany, adviser for London-based Zest Advisory LLP, said getting Islamic finance to become more mainstream needs a significant change to take place in the industry.

EU - ECB’s Mersch Says Islamic Banks May Suffer More in Downturns

European Central Bank Governing Council member Yves Mersch said Islamic financial institutions may be more vulnerable to economic slumps.

“Islamic banks may suffer more from the real economic downturn that normally follows financial turbulences as the losses of the customers are partly shared,” Mersch said at a conference on Islamic finance in Frankfurt today. “Moreover, the lack of product standardization and the missing harmonization of Islamic standards in general pose risks to the management of liquidity.”