The theme of this conference is Islamic
Finance. It is well documented that there is an unprecedented interest in
Islamic finance worldwide today following the recent financial crisis that has
severely affected every corner of globe.
It is also worth noting that this great
interest in Islamic finance is not confined to Muslim countries alone, but many
non-Muslim countries such as Britain, India, Russia, Singapore and the United
States of America are among the places where Islamic finance is gaining
momentum.
According to the latest statistics, the volume
of assets managed by Islamic financial institutions has dramatically increased
in the last few years. For instance, Islamic finance assets has increased from
USD $1.3 trillion in 2011 to USD $1.8 trillion in 2013 and 34% of the total
assets managed by Islamic banks are in the GCC. Moreover, it is reported that
Islamic finance industry has increased by 20% in the last five years while
conventional finance in most countries was either stagnant or had a very
conservative growth.
This further confirms the fact that Islamic
finance is far more resilient at times of financial crisis than conventional
finance as the recent one has clearly proved which is due to the underlying
principles of Islamic finance as they are real asset backed modes of financing.
Islamic Sukuk in particular has witnessed a
phenomenal growth in the last few years, following the decision of some
governments to issue Sukuk to finance some of their governmental sectors which
has led to the expansion of the Islamic Sukuk market. However, despite all these
notable achievements, Islamic finance still represents only 1.3% of the total
international finance market.
Based on the above mentioned developments the
Sharjah Islamic Center for Studies and Research in Islamic Finance has decided
to organize its first Conference under the title “Islamic finance: Innovative
tools, Contentious applications issues and future challenges.
