Dubai SME (DSME), the agency of Dubai Economy tasked to develop the small and medium enterprise (SME) industry, has earmarked AED 20 million for the capital guarantee scheme initiated by its financial arm, The Mohammed Bin Rashid Fund (The Fund). This is in partnership with Beehive, the first regulated peer-to-peer (P2P) lending platform in the region.  According to DSME, the guarantee scheme will allow SMEs and investors access to fintech, supporting business continuity and expansion, whilst also promoting economic growth. In addition, it will allow eligible SMEs to access funding...

Despite the need to reduce spending, Saudi Arabia's Finance Minister, Mohammed Al-Jadaan, is confident that the Saudi economy will overcome the COVID-19 crisis. Jadaan added that the Government of Saudi Arabia has firmly handled the pandemic with its fullest commitment whilst focusing on the safety and wellbeing of its residents and citizens.  Thanking the country’s leadership for its unlimited support, along with quick decisions to launch several initiatives to protect businesses and individuals affected by the pandemic, Jadaan also added that the Governm...

Although economists were not surprised by the sharp decline in the April 2020 Consumer Price Index (CPI) numbers released by authorities, consumers have been viewing the CPI data in a different light. According to the Federation of Malaysian Consumers Associations (FOMCA), unemployment was cited as the key reason for 2.9% year-over-year (YoY) fall in the CPI to a record low of 117.6, with this decline being much lower than the Malaysian Industrial Development Finance (MIDF)’s estimate of -1.5% YoY. Datuk Paul Selvaraj, Chief Executive Officer of the FOMCA, noted that despite overa...

Islamic banking is developing rapidly in the Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS) nations, and is positioned to become integrated into the worldwide Islamic finance industry as well as the global Islamic capital market. This development is firmly backed by the Islamic Development Bank, recognised as one of the region's most significant growth drivers due to its large investment portfolio in the sector, as well as growing demand for funding for agriculture and transport services as a result of sustained economic growth in the region. As stated in media, according to...

Dubai Commercity, the first development of its kind to cater to the e-commerce sector, is expected to open in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) by the end of 2020. The AED 3.2 billion project will be a joint venture between the Dubai Airport Freezone Authority (DAFZA) and the property developer Wasl. The free zone project, which will house 12 buildings, includes a business cluster, logistics centre and a social centre is expected to be completed in 2023 with staged openings, wherein the first phase of the project is set to open in November 2020. As cited by lo...

Data from the Capital Market Authority (CMA)’s 2019 Annual Report reveal that gross direct premiums in Oman’s Takaful industry grew 20% year-over-year (YoY) to OMR 64.167 million in 2019 from OMR 53.584 million the previous year. CMA stated that this growth came in line with the steady growth trends witnessed in Oman’s Islamic finance industry. According to the Annual Report, the overall insurance industry (both conventional and Takaful) witnessed a 5.0% YoY increase in gross direct premiums to OMR 486.58 million in 2019. Takaful premiums accounted for 13.2% (OMR 64 mi...

Fitch Ratings (Fitch) has affirmed the Long-Term Issuer Default Rating (IDR) of Abu Dhabi Islamic Bank (ADIB) in the United Arab Emirates (UAE), at A+ with a Stable Outlook. ADIB’s viability rating (VR) has also been maintained at bb-.Key rating drivers supporting the affirmation of the long-term IDR include the fact that ADIB is likely to receive Government support if needed, with this financing being sourced through sovereign wealth funds, as well as recurring revenue from hydrocarbon production. According to Fitch, the willingness of the authorities to provide support to the banking...

Corporate Debt Maturity, Repayment Structure and Monetary Policy Transmission

Mercantile Bank Limited (MBL) of Bangladesh has decided to begin its Islamic banking window operations under the brand name of ‘Taqwa’ at the earliest, according to a press release published following the first meeting of MBL’s Shariah Supervisory Committee held on the 17th of May 2020.Earlier in September 2019, the board members of MBL approved the proposal to establish its Islamic Banking arm according to local media reports. In December 2019, MBL authorities announced they had already received primary approval from Bangladesh Bank (BB), and were making plans to call for...

Funding raised via Oman’s capital market leapt by 75% year-over-year (YoY) to OMR 3.14 billion (USD 8.2 billion) in 2019, from OMR 1.8 billion (USD 4.67 billion) in 2018. The vast increase in funding, which was earmarked for various projects and economic initiatives in 2019, underlines the important role of the Omani capital market in the financing of the country’s economic development, according to Abdullah bin Salim al Salmi, Executive President of the Capital Market Authority (CMA).As stated in the CMA’s 2019 Annual Report, the CMA aims to make both the capital and insur...