IFN OnAir

In this IFN Podcast episode, Munirah Khairuddin, the country head and CEO of Principal Asset Management Malaysia speaks to Nessreen Tamano of IFN about the rising popularity and impact of digital investing, especially in the context of Shariah compliant finance, in Malaysia and around the world.

Estate planning is a major challenge in Malaysia, with the upper bound of frozen assets estimated at RM90 billion (US$19.36 billion). In this episode of the podcast, Marlena Kareem, the editor of ISFI, speaks to Ariffin Sabirin, the founder of Wasiyyah Shoppe, and Khairul Nisa Ismail, CEO of Sedania As Salam Capital, about how they are collaborating to address the Muslim estate planning challenge with the Hibah instrument. 

The mainstreaming of digital lending has overhauled the risk landscape for banks and financial institutions. How should the finance industry adapt? In this episode, Vineeta Tan speaks to Guru Raghavendran, the senior vice-president of banking practice at Azentio Software, to explore this topic.

Carbon credits are positioned as a potential avenue to alleviate some of the global climate pressures emanating from carbon emissions. But they are not without critics. Are they a viable asset class and how can we best optimize carbon credits and offsets? My name is Vineeta Tan, the managing editor of IFN. To understand this, in this episode, Vineeta Tan speaks to Professor Lisa Wilson, the managing director of XTCC, a Shariah compliant investment platform for carbon credits; and Dr Scott Levy, the managing director of Al Waseelah and founder of XTCC. 

Air Selangor issued its largest SRI Sukuk to date in October 2023. In this episode, Marlena Kereem, the editor of Islamic Sustainable Finance and Investment, sits down with Kevin Lee Shih-Min, the head of finance and strategy at Air Selangor, to talk about this landmark issuance and its SRI Sukuk strategy moving forward. 

There is a noticeable shift from traditional bank financing toward alternative financing across multiple asset classes in the GCC and beyond, which is resulting in the rise of instruments such as venture debt funds. In this episode, brought to you by King and Spalding, Asal Saghari and Mike Rainey explore this trend, bringing us expert insights and analyses to help us understand this shift and how it impacts the financing landscape. Nathan Kwon joins as a special guest. 

There are areas of opportunities in the Islamic private equity and venture capital space, particularly in the GCC and Southeast Asian regions, where Lim Say Cheong, the CEO of Saudi Venture Capital Investment Company, has focused on in the last decade. He shares his insights with IFN in this episode with Nessreen Tamano.

reNIKOLA Solar II issued the world's first Climate Bonds Initiative-certified Sukuk in September this year. Marlena Kareem, the editor of ISFI, speaks to Khong Ho Ming, the executive director and COO of reNIKOLA, about this landmark issuance.

The Islamic insurtech sector in Malaysia is still relatively small, but CEO of Ouch!, Shazy Noorazman, believes that more players will emerge as the digital Takaful opportunity is hard to ignore. Shazy discusses the prospects and pain points of the industry in this episode with Vineeta Tan. 

Ratings play a significant role in the voluntary carbon market space.  Marlena Kareem, the editor of ISFI, speaks to Ronan Carr, the chief research officer at BeZero Carbon, about the role of ratings in the carbon market, its recent issuance of the world’s first pre-issuance rating for a carbon project as well as the mispricing of carbon credits.

What steps are necessary to ensure Islamic sustainable investors are offered a common definition of climate risk standards in ASEAN? What is driving innovation of Islamic sustainable and social finance and investment products, and are we successfully creating products which satisfy both Shariah and ESG requirements? How do systematic tilts in portfolio allocation resulting from Shariah screens influence ESG integration in the development of Shariah-screened ESG funds? What is the role of the asset management sector in directing capital to social causes, and how can Waqf be further deployed to facilitate this? How are investors using ESG data and indices to benchmark and measure portfolio performance and is data still a challenge for the industry? We ask an expert panel.Moderator:Vineeta Tan, Managing Editor and Director, Islamic Finance newsPanelists:Amit Pathak, Director, Head of ESG Index Products for Asia Pacific, S&P Dow Jones IndicesElias Moubarak, Partner, Trowers & HamlinsShahariah Shaharudin, President, Saturna Malaysia

What is driving the shift toward transition and sustainability-linked bonds and Sukuk issuance, and how do we maintain this momentum? What options do the deployment of sustainability-linked financing structures offer issuers, and are they properly understood? How do we better identify viable underlying assets for transition and sustainability-linked issuance, while also verifying the actual uses of proceeds? What role does transition and sustainability-linked finance play in the development of sustainable projects and infrastructure development? How can adherence to KPIs in the post-issuance process be assured and what tools are available for this purpose, such as second-party opinions and external review? We seek the views of an expert panel.Moderator:Marlena Kareem, Editor, Islamic Sustainable Finance & Investment, REDmoney GroupPanelists:Dr Ayaz Ismail, Director – Wholesale Banking, CIMB Islamic BankBasheer Ahmad, Listing Authority, Markets, Dubai Financial Services AuthorityJeffrey Lee, Vice-President, Regional Manager APAC, Sustainable Finance, Moody’s Investors ServiceMillie Yap, Director, Debt Capital Markets, HSBCDr Mohamad Zabidi Ahmad, Regional Chief Representative, DDCAP Group

Do currently available taxonomies adequately address sector-specific transition concerns and what are salient additions to later versions?Assessing disclosure requirements and developing an effective climate change curriculum for financial institutionsHow are governments and exchanges enabling the trading of carbon credits, and what are the objectives and benefits of such initiatives?Defining the role of the financial sector in facilitating an effective energy transition in conjunction with the National Energy PolicyHow will the pace of adoption of ESG by SMEs impact the banking sector and capital markets?Moderator:Sharifatul Hanizah, Executive Director, Islamic Capital Market Development, Securities Commission MalaysiaPanelists:Bilal Parvaiz, Executive Director and Head Islamic Corporate, Commercial and Institutional Banking, Standard Chartered SaadiqLouis Booth, APAC Commercial Lead, SylveraMohd Ekmal Mohd Zazi, Regional Head, Wholesale Banking, CIMB Islamic BankSedef Gunsur, Senior Investment Officer, Financial Institutions Group, International Finance Corporation

Interviewee: Azman Mokhtar, Chairman, Malaysia International Islamic Finance Centre Leadership CouncilInterviewer: Zainal Izlan Zainal Abidin, Former Deputy Chief Executive, Securities Commission Malaysia

Marlena Kareem, Editor, Islamic Sustainable Finance & Investment, REDmoney Group

What does a successful strategic roadmap for advancing transition look like? Are current policies and actions sufficiently aligned with climate risk? Are the various climate taxonomies conflicting or complementary, and how do we offer a clear and consistent message? Are tax and operational cost incentives for companies and issuers sufficient, and are current regulatory frameworks encouraging product and market innovation? Finally, how do we effectively position and market Islamic sustainable finance and investment, and what would represent meaningful goals for the sector?Moderator:Vineeta Tan, Managing Editor and Director, Islamic Finance newsPanelists:Lim Beng Guan, Executive Director, reNIKOLA Group of CompaniesMushtaq Kapasi, Managing Director, Chief Representative Asia-Pacific, International Capital Market AssociationNor Masliza Sulaiman, Deputy CEO, CIMB Investment BankRaja Amir Shah Raja Azwa, CEO, HSBC Amanah

Keynote AddressDr Awang Adek Hussin, Executive Chairman, Securities Commission Malaysia

UK-headquartered Autarky Sukuk's latest offering serves investors looking for a Shariah compliant investment based on real estate in the UK. Co-founders Shoaib Bux and Yasin Patel speak to IFN's Nessreen Tamano about the challenges and opportunities in the market.

Adnan Zaylani Mohamad Zahid, Deputy Governor, Bank Negara Malaysia

With significant growth being seen in new and alternative funding activities, Malaysia has an opportunity to create a competitive advantage. What does enhanced access for new Shariah compliant P2P and ECF operators and solutions mean for the digital finance marketplace, and what opportunities are available to retail investors? What sectors are prime beneficiaries for such investment and how do we ensure new sources of financing flow to the vital SME sector? What is on offer from private equity and venture capital, and how effective will new regulatory guidelines designed to increase access to private capital prove to be? Finally, what does the development and evolution of digital assets such as digital currencies, tokens and new forms of crowdfunding mean for the Islamic financial services sector in Southeast Asia?Moderator:Shabnam Mokhtar, Managing Director, SHAPE Knowledge ServicesPanelists:Elain Lockman, CEO and Co-Founder, Ata PlusHakan Ozyon, CEO, Hejaz Financial ServicesDr Wong Huei Ching, Executive Director, Digital Strategy and Innovation, Securities Commission Malaysia