UK - IBB expands into Yorkshire

www.theislamicglobe.com - Local press is reporting that Birmingham-based Islamic bank, the Islamic Bank of Britain is expanding into the northern English county of Yorkshire.
Speaking to the Yorkshire Post, Imran Pasha, IBB’s head of retail said that the bank was predicting a tenfold increase in its customer base within four years. (source)

UK - TAKAFUL - Struggling UK Takaful firm taken over

theislamicglobe.com - Run-off specialist Randall & Quilter has bought Principle Insurance Holdings, Britain’s only Takaful firm two years after it was placed in run-off.

Principle had net reserves of £2.8m ($4.5m) as at June 30, 2011. The Takaful firm which had a net asset value of £5.1m ($8.2m) as at December 31, 2010 was composed almost entirely of motor Takaful.
Randall & Quilter said it paid £4.3m ($6.9m) for 100% of Principle’s equity and completed the transaction from its own cash reserves. (source)

UK - Gatehouse JV into takaful

A lot of people have been saying that London is losing its way in terms of global Islamic finance, but the fightback could start here with the launch of GNL Insurance, the City’s first Takaful brokerage.
“We’re for the first time offering global corporations Takaful support from London, the world’s leading insurance market,” Richard Bishop, CEO of GNL Insurance told The Islamic Globe. (source)

UK - Flying out for the summer

Cooling Islamic markets in Europe have spurred banks to send staff off to sunnier climes in the Middle East, according to the UK’s Islamic Finance Council.
In a bid to capture growth, UK Islamic banks are expected to follow the lead of European Islamic Investment Bank (EIIB), which recently shifted key personnel to Bahrain.
Islamic Finance Council board member, Omar Shaikh, said: “I wouldn’t be surprised if others do something similar to EIIB and formalize some of their operations in the GCC . The current arrangements are no longer fit for purpose.” (source)

HUNGARY - Hungary hungry for IF

Hungary's first Islamic bank is on its way, says Istvan Kaknics-Ujhelyi, director of Hungary's Al-Gharnati Foundation and advisor to the mayor of the northern city of Eger. Hosszu Ferenc Ali Hasszan, a Hungarian currently undergoing Islamic banking training in Malaysia, told The Islamic Globe that Hungary is working towards opening its first fully functional Shari'ah compliant bank, called Magyar Iszlam Bank in the coming years.(source)

EUROPE - European woe for SEREF

The place not to be if you were investing in a Shari’ah compliant Real Estate Investment Trust over the last few years was mainland Europe, as the $6.3m Solidarity European Real Estate fund aptly shows.

SEREF is a fund of funds that invests in other property funds as well as having the facility to invest directly in real estate. (source)

LUXEMBOURG - Luxembourg stands tall

You don't have to big to be mighty, and Luxembourg is living proof of that. This tiny land-locked nation at the heart of Europe has always punched well above its weight in terms of financial services, and despite its small geographical size and a population shy of half a million, Luxembourg can lay claim to being the world's second largest investment fund center after the US, the most important private banking center in the Eurozone and Europe's leading center for reinsurance. (full story - zawya)

EUROPE - Takaful Emarat looks overseas

Peter Egger, deputy GM of Takaful Emarat has told The Islamic Globe that the Emirati Takaful firm is looking to expand to overseas markets. He said: “Once we reach break-even in our home market, we plan to expand in the Middle East and in a later stage to European countries with significant Muslim communities such as the UK, Germany, France and Austria.” (full story)

UK - Gatehouse in £60m Sukuk

UK-based investment bank, Gatehouse Bank is planning a £60m ($97.8m) Sukuk by the end of Q1 2011, according to Richard Thomas, the bank's CEO.

Thomas was speaking to journalists at a conference in Abu Dhabi at the beginning of the week. (full story)

UK - UK not ready for Islamic finance

Baljeet Kaur Grewal, managing director and vice chairman of Kuwait Finance House does not think the UK is ready for Islamic finance at the retail level. Grewal, speaking at a seminar in London, was explaining why KFH had not opened offices in the UK. She explained that although KFH had executed a number of real estate transactions for private clients on it books, it had not started wholesale or retail operations in the UK. She said: “We’re a commercial profit-making organization, and we’ll go where we can make the most profit, or where the best opportunities lie.” She confirmed that KFH were opening up an office in Moscow, were talking to the French regulator about the development of Shari’ah compliant finance in France and had representation in Australia. (full story)