Islamic banking and finance

• However, increased reliance on digital technologies during the pandemic drove interest in quantum computing, boosting investments and research efforts.
• However, the full impact of the pandemic on the quantum photonics market remains subject to ongoing developments in the global economy and the technology landscape.
• Moreover, the same segment is projected to manifest the highest CAGR of 33.79% from 2023 to 2032, driven by the advancements in quantum technologies, such as quantum computing, quantum communication, and quantum sensing.
• These trends and growth factors present significant opportunities for quantum photonics providers in the quantum computing segment.

• The fundamental distinguishing feature of an Islamic bank is its adherence to Islamic, or Sharia, law.
• Why do these rules and conventions exist, and how do they work in practice?

1. No interest

• For devout Muslims, conventional banking services are problematic because of the main way most banks make profit – by charging interest on loans.
• Islam’s holy book, the Quran, prohibits all transactions associated with interest.
• Usury refers to lending money at unreasonable interest rates, but the term is sometimes used to mean any charging of interest at all.
• Similarly, deposits with the bank don’t earn interest, but instead they earn a return that will rise or fall in line with the bank’s overall profits.

2. No speculative assets

• From this, Islamic scholars infer that purchasing land or property purely for speculation is not permissible, but buying it to undertake economic activities is allowed.
• This means Islamic banks cannot engage in the kind of debt-based financing that underpins the home or business loans offered by many Australian banks.
• Similarly, Islamic banks can provide loans to buy land that will be used for economic activities, but cannot profit purely from land price appreciation.

3. No ‘socially harmful’ business

Sharia law does not allow an Islamic bank to finance economic sectors that are deemed harmful to people’s wellbeing, such as alcohol, tobacco, gambling, adult entertainment, pork products, or arms production.

4. Islamic corporate governance

Islamic banks typically appoint two boards: a regular board of directors similar to those that govern most banks, and a Sharia supervisory board to oversee compliance with Islamic laws.

What are Islamic Bank Australia’s prospects?

• The main challenge for Islamic Bank Australia will be to gain accreditation from the Australian Prudential Regulatory Authority (APRA), which regulates Australia’s commercial banking industry.
• In many Muslim-majority countries, such as Malaysia for example, a separate Sharia Advisory Council, typically appointed by the country’s central bank, oversees the Islamic finance industry.
• Islamic Bank Australia’s Sharia committee has three members: Malaysia-based Ashraf Md Hashim, who also sits on that country’s Sharia Advisory Council; Mohamed Ali Elgari, an Islamic economics academic in Saudi Arabia; and Australia-based Islamic banking scholar Rashid Raashed.
• A related issue is the question of how Islamic Bank Australia will interact with Australia’s existing banks.

• Zug, Switzerland, June 28, 2023 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Islamic Coin, the Shariah-compliant, ethics-first crypto has again shattered records, securing $200M from Alpha Blue Ocean’s ABO Digital.
• Total funding has reached $400M, beating Circle, BlockFi and Solana and has become one of the largest ever in the history of the crypto space.
• Both Islamic Coin and the Haqq Network that powers it cater to the world’s 1.9 billion Muslims and beyond, focused on game-changing products and services.
• "ABO Digital is thrilled to collaborate with Islamic Coin as an alternative finance provider.

• Global law firm Greenberg Traurig's Mexico City office received the Latin Lawyer Award 2023 for 'Deal of the Year' in the Banking and Finance category for representing Phoenix Tower International LLC in the restructuring of various loans.
• MEXICO CITY, May 15, 2023 /PRNewswire-PRWeb/ -- Global law firm Greenberg Traurig 's Mexico City office received the Latin Lawyer Award 2023 for 'Deal of the Year' in the Banking and Finance category for representing Phoenix Tower International LLC in the restructuring of various loans.
• The Greenberg Traurig attorneys team was led by Mexico City Shareholders Luis Cortés and Miguel Yturbe .
• Each year, Latin Lawyer identifies landmark Latin American corporate deals and cases across eleven categories.