IslamicFinance.de. Executive News March 2005, Issue No. 11. Islamic Finance in the West. Islamic Banking. Takaful

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1 IslamicFinance.de Executive News March 2005, Issue No. 11 Islamic Finance in the West Michael Gassner Consultancy Editorial Dear Readers, As salamu alaikum Very shortly before launching this issue, we received notice with deep regret that Mr. Muazzam Ali the founding chairman of the Institute of Islamic Banking and Insurance, passed away peacefully on Thursday. May Allah reward his deeds. Best regards wa salaams, Michael Saleh Gassner Cologne - Germany Founding Chairman Institute of IIBI passed away Islamic Weath Management Seminar Geneva, 8/9 June Islamic Funds in the USA Islamic Banking FITCH affirmed rating of Islamic Development Bank Dubai Islamic Bank appointed new CEO Industry facts and figures on Kuwait Regulation for Islamic subsidiaries in Malaysia Islamic banking in Indonesia sovereign rating raised RHB Islamic Bank talks with Dallah Albaraka Group Banking Act in Singapore sufficient no changes necessary Islamic bank license in Dubai rejected for size reasons? Union of National Bank sets up an Islamic finance company Dubai Bank reached break even and expands in Islamic finance First Islamic Bank changes CI to Arcapita Islamic Credit Card in Bangladesh Bahrain and Jersey discussing closer cooperation Qatar National Bank sets up an Islamic division GFH appointed Dr. Ala'a Al-Yousuf as Chief Economist ABC appointed Hesham M. Mahmoud as Head of Marketing Taylor Wessing and Stephenson Harwood new appointments Fixed Income (Sukuk, Murabaha, Ijara, Istisnaa) BMA Ijara Sukuk BD % fix IDB USD 60 mn facility to Bangladesh Tabreed rated BBB/Stable by investment bank Next Pakistani bond in US conventional? Jimah, Malaysia RM 5 bn Corporate Sukuk by June DMCC gold related Islamic facility Real Estate, Private Equity, Funds Amlak Real Estate fund placed 2 nd Saudi Real Estate fund avalaible for non-saudis IPO of Saudi Al Bilad Bank oversubscribed Sukuk in 2006 Turkish Telecom to be privatised Etisalat and Dubai Islamic bidding Islamic bond fund PRUdana Malaysia CIMB offers Dana Wafiq fund Sukuk and compliant equity 2 Saudi Real Estate funds open for non-saudis to invest Parsoli entering Indian capital market with equity offering Sharjah Islamic Bank increased capital Takaful Emirates Islamic Bank ICIEC Bank Master Policy Bahrain International Insurance Centre major investor, construction start Distribution Partners: Michael Gassner, Consultancy, Kyffhäuserstr. 8, Cologne, Germany We made every effort to ensure the accurateness of the herein enclosed information. However we could not accept any legal responsibility whatsover for consequences may arise. Especially we do not take over so for any hyperlink given in this newsletter which is referring to third parties. Copyright notice: This publication might be copied, duplicated, stored in whole without prior permission. It may not be distributed partly or against fees without prior written permission nor changed. Phone/Fax: Subscription: Free of charge - Advertising: gassner@islamicfinance.de

2 IslamicFinance.de Executive News March 2005, Issue No. 11 Page 1 Dear Reader, We regret to inform you about the pass away of Mr. Muazzam Ali passed away Founding Chairman Institute of Islamic Banking and Insurance Free Subscription No Obligations Mr. Muazzam Ali the founding Chairman of the Institute of Islamic Banking and Insurance last Thursday. May Allah accept his deeds. We welcome all the readers receiving a print copy on The International Islamic Finance Forum and those whch get this newsletter forwarded. This service is free of charge; you are encouraged to subscribe on the website without any obligation as well as to forward this newsletter to any of your friends and colleagues which you think could benefit of it. Islamic Finance in the West Islamic Wealth Management Seminar - Geneva 8/9 June 2005 Introductory Workshops On 8 th and 9 th June we offer an Islamic Wealth Management Seminar in Geneva, Hôtel du Rhône. Corporate Sponsor is Encore Management S.A., among the trainers you find John Sandwick, Encore Management, Trevor Norman, Volaw, Tariq Al Rifai, Failaka, Dr. Hardeep Tamana, FysheCrestar Islamic Asset Management and the Editor. Book early to assure you get a place. On 7 th June we offer our Introductory Workshop first time in Geneva and on 6 th September in Frankfurt as usual in the Chamber of Commerce Conference Centre Old Stock Exchange. 7 th June Geneva 6 th September Frankfurt Islamic Funds in USA Melissa Alison wrote in the Seattle Times about the Islamic funds avalaible in the US and named Amana Income Fund and Growth Fund and others managed by Allied Asset Advisors and Azzad Asset Management. The Amana Growth Fund produced a total return of negative 3.5 % over the past 5 years, the Amana Income Fund a total return of 19 % in the same period. Fund Manager is Saturna Capital. The fund grew from USD 30 mn in 2001 to USD 81 mn by the effect of a marketing campaign and counting 7,000 investors. Islamic Banking FITCHaffirmed IDB's rating The rating agency FITCH sent out a press release on 23rd February regarding the affirmed rating of AA/F1+ for the Islamic Development Bank (IDB). The rating reflects, writes FITCH, IDB's exceptionally high level of capitalisation, strong liquidity, preferred creditor status and strong support from member countries. The ratings also factors in the bank's ambitious 5-year strategic plan, which will require additional market funding. IDB operates mainly in below-investment grade countries and is holding it's assets in banks rated in the BBB range. Additionally the bank's credit policy allows debt rescheduling, which is not the case in other AAA rated multilateral development banks. The funding needs were historically met with equity and shall now be undertaken to a large extend with Sukuk. In the next 5 years the funding needs are planned with USD 4.5 bn. Dubai Islamic Bank new CEO: Saad Abdul Razak Dubai Islamic Bank announced its new CEO Saad Abdul Razak succeeding Butti Al Falasy who resigned recently. Butti Al Falasy is leaving the bank for private reasons. Saad Abdul Razak is former Deputy CEO, reported Gulf News on 10 th of March.

3 IslamicFinance.de Executive News March 2005, Issue No. 11 Page 2 Kuwait USD 5 bn assets Kuwait News Agency published on 1st March figures on the Islamic finance industry in Kuwait. Sheikh Salem Abdulaziz Al-Sabah, Governor of the Central Bank of Kuwait declared that USD 5 bn in assets are managed through Isalmic financial firms. He attented the IFSB Seminar on legal issues. In 2000 only 10 firms with USD 1.4 bn in assets were active. Kuwait had issued a law to govern the work of those institutions. Beside the Kuwait Finance House a bank license is hold by Bubyan Bank and Kuwait Real Bank, which will become an Islamic bank March International Islamic Finance Forum Malaysia Regulation Islamic Subsidiaries external investors accepted Islamic Retail Banking 2005 Hong Bonn How reported in The Star Malaysia on 2nd March about the new aim of Bank Negara to promote Islamic banking subsidiaries of local and foreign banks. The Governor Tan Sri Zeti Akthar Azizi said that they allow to divest up to 49 % of their shares in the Islamic subsidiaries, which has to remain a true subsidiary of the commercial bank. Reese Loh and Joan Ng discussed the outcome of this decision in The Edge Daily on 2nd March stating that their is little incentive for a license allowing them to set up an Islamic banking subsidiary, but will likely continiue to work via an Islamic window. HSBC Amanah's head, Mohamed Ross Mohd Din, said it will keep the options open, and the move might have positive implications on the long term. An analyst said the move is more likely to encourage the remaining banks like Maybank and Public Bank to establish an Islamic subsidiary. Dubai Indonesia Assets end of 2005: USD 2.6 bn Rating raised by The International Herald Tribune took a closer look at Indonesia, authored by Shanthy Nambiar from Bloomberg News on 3rd March. The Indonesia's Islamic banking industry is poised to expand more than 2/3 this year, said the central bank in a report. Assets will probably reach 24 trillion rupiah, or USD 2.6 bn in 2005 or 1.8 % of total assets. Such assets totalled 14 trillion rupiah at the end of last year, from 7.85 trillion rupiah a year earlier. There is an attempt to compete closer with Malaysia and Bahrain as Islamic banking hub. The central bank issued in 2002 the target of 5 % share of total banking assets in In 2004 the figure was only 1 % after 0.7 % in 2003 to be compared with Malaysia's 9.7 % in 2003 (6.9 % in 2000). Bank Muamalat Indonesia and Bank Syariah Capital Intelligence Mega Indonesia are operating as Islamic Banks in Indonesia. The conventional Bank Negara Indonesia and Bank Niaga have divisions that provide Islamic banking services. B+ On 9th March the Cyprus based rating ageny Capital Intelligence raised the sovereign rating by one notch to B+ for long-term foreign currency and BB- for local currency ratings.

4 IslamicFinance.de Executive News March 2005 No. 11 Page 3 RHB Islamic Dallah Albaraka Further Doreen Leong reported on 1 st March about the RHB Islamic Bank, which aims to become one of the top three institutions in Malaysia's Islamic banking industry in the next five years, according to the CEO Khalid Mahmood Bhaimia. RHB Islamic Bank is the third full-fledged Islamic banking institution in Malaysia and the first Islamic banking subsidiary of an existing commercial banking group, prior to this it served the clients via a so-called Islamic window known as Skim Perbankan Islam (SPI), since Target markets were also Singapore, Thailand and Brunei where the RHB Bank has branches. On 4th March Gulf Daily News reported on the approval to begin talks to sell up 30 % in its new Islamic arm to the Saudi-based Dallah Albaraka Group (DAG). Leasing Conference Kuwait April 2005 IslamicFinance.de will be present on this conference Singapore No new banking act Dubai Bank license rejected Union of National Bank set up an Islamic finance company Dubai Bank Break Even in 2 years Islamic products planned The Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS) will not introduce a new banking act for Islamic finance. The Deputy Chairman Tharman Shanmugaratnam told the parliament that a review of banking laws by MAS has found that the current regulatory framework does not impede Islamic financing, reported Frederick Lim on Channel NewsAsia. Salah Eldin Eltayeb wrote in Khaleej Times on 1st March about rumours that a major Dubai based national bank was not granted to run an Islamic entity which they have applied for. The Central Bank's policy is that enough banks are on the market to serve the customers and rather they encourage mergers between smaller entities to form a major financial institution. New banks either Islamic or conventional are not desired. The Central Bank's supervising policy is to help the industry; Basel II will require higher capital and smaller banks increase the sector's overall risk. Several applications were rejected in the last few years. The Union National Bank (UNB) is applying to set up an Islamic finance company capitalised at Dh 599 mn raised through an IPO. The application is sent to the Central Bank and approval is expected within 3 months. The bank has 27 branches and an agreement with the Emirates Post to offer banking services in their 72 branches as well, achieving the largest retail network in the UAE. After this local expansion the banks plans in the 3 to 4 years to expand to other countries like Qatar where they await already approval. Further Iran, Libya, Sudan and Egypt are named of being of interest during , reported Dubaiinteract on 28th February. Dubai Bank reached break even in 2 years instead of the planned 4 years, the Vice Chairman Mohamed Ali Alabbar is cited by AMEInfo on 2nd March. The operational venues reached AED 111 mn an increase of 156 % compared to last year. The bank's profit were AED 4 mn, said Ziad Makkawi, CEO since February. In Khaleej Times he was cited that Islamic banking products will be issued soon. A MoU was signed according to AMEinfo with a German firm regarding an Islamic Private Equity fund for medium sized companies to be launched after finalising details, size and structure over the next couple of months.

5 IslamicFinance.de Executive News March 2005 No. 11 Page 4 First Islamic changed to Arcapita First Islamic Bank in Bahrain is changing its corporate identity, wrote Gulf Daily News on 28th of February: ARCAPITA. The renaming includes the subsidiaries in US and UK formerly named Crescent Capital Investments. The change is official on March, 15. Prior to this news the bank announced record results for 2004, with a net income of USD 70.5 mn which represents a 57 % increase. The return on average total equity reached 27.5 %. (AMEInfo, 15th February). Islamic Wealth Management 8/9 June 2005 Geneva, Switzerland Trainers: John Sandwick Tariq Al Rifai Hardeep Tamana Trevor Norman Michael Gassner Islamic Wealth Management 8 th / 9 th June 2005 Venue: Mandarin Oriental Hôtel du Rhône, Geneva, Switzerland Sponsor: Encore Management S.A. Rapid Registration: Call gassner@islamicfinance.de Bangladesh Islamic Credit Card Bahrain Jersey In Bangladesh six Islamic commercial banks are planning to jointly launch a credit card. Conventional credit cards should have reached the total number of 200,000. The structure needs to be revised by the Central Shariah Board for Islamic Banks in Bangladesh, reported Govinda Shil in Financial Express on 2nd March. Gulf Daily News covered on 2nd March discussing a potential partnership between Bahrain and Jersey. A quarter of the European Island's population is working in the financial industry. Jersey is not part of the UK and located off the French coast. They are granted tax privileges for its loyalty to the English Crown till today, which makes it a major offshore financial centre in Europe. The Bahrain Tribune on 2nd March mentioned the 28- member Jersey delegation, among them Trevor L. Norman of Volaw. Jersey has 55 institutions with GBP 160 bn in assets. Qatar National Bank Islamic division Gulf Finance House Dr. Ala'a Al-Yousuf Qatar National Bank (QNB) is to set up Islamic division for Sharia-compliant products according to Gulf Times, 14th of February. This division will design and launch Islamic finanical products. The CEO Saeed al-misnad said they set up a separate division as a legal requirement and the Qatar Central Banking already gave the go-ahead. QNB has 33 branches which is the largest network in Qatar. Gulf Finance House appointed Dr. Ala'a Al-Yousuf as Chief Economist, reported AMEInfo on 28th February. Previously he was director for the Mideast and Africa in the Sovereign Ratings Group of Standard & Poors, London. He headed also a task force to develop a rating methodology for the Islamic sukuk. ABC Islamic Bank Hesham Mohamed Mahmoud ABC Islamic Bank has appointed Hesham Mohamed Mahmoud as Assistant General Manager, Head of Marketing. Prior to joining ABC, Mr. Mahmoud was with Shamil Bank for 5 years as head of Structured Finance, Corporate Banking in charge for offshore activities. (AMEinfo, 10th February) TaylorWessing Stephenson Harwood Mustafa Hussain Bilal Aquil TaylorWessing announced Mustafa Hussain as new associate in their firm by a press release on 1st March, who was formerly with Stephenson Harwood. The latter announced that Bilal Aquil is now in charge for Islamic Finance being previously engage with the French bank Calyon, reported Joanne Harris in The Lawyer on 23rd February.

6 IslamicFinance.de Executive News March 2005, No. 11 Page 5 Fixed Income (Sukuk, Murabaha) BMA Ijara Sukuk BD % fix 3-years The Bahrain Monetary Agency (BMA) issued an Ijara Sukuk about BD 30 mn (USD 79.5 mn) which was 50 % oversubscribed. The issue carried a fixed return of 4.5 % unlike most of the issues on the market, which offers a variable rental return benchmarked with LIBOR. It is the 11th Ijara Sukuk issued by the BMA with a total volume reached of USD 1.21 bn, of which USD 1.14 bn is currently outstanding. Subscribers, according to the press release of 28th February, were mainly conventional commercial banks, pension funds and insurance companies. The current sukuk was issued upon maturity of a USD 70 mn 3-year Sukuk issued in 2002, which was the first to mature in BMA's Ijara sukuk series, which began in September Listing will be on the Bahrain Stock Exchange. Securitisation World Middle East April April 2005 The Jumeirah Beach Hotel Dubai, UAE Where issuers, arrangers and investors come together to understand and initiate new Islamic and conventional securitisation deals Securitisation World Middle East 2005 is THE meeting place for anyone whose role involves sukuks or capital markets debt. With in-depth analysis of innovative new deal structures and Shari'ah compliance, this is your unique opportunity be part of this developing and lucrative market! Detail online: Learn from the most comprehensive line-up of specialists on how to construct successful securitisation deals including: BSEC - Bemo Securitisation SAL (Lebanon), AAOIFI (Bahrain), Volaw Trust (Jersey), CIMB Limited (Malaysia), Abu Dhabi Commercial Bank (UAE), Moody s Investors Service (UK) and many more Full details can be found at: IDB USD 60 mn Bangladesh Tabreed BBB/Stable Pakistan next bond in USA The Islamic Development Bank provides a USD 60 mn Islamic facility to Bangladesh for linking the country to the Submarine Telecommunication, reported Bangladesh Web on 14th of February. The purchase lease back arrangement will be used to finance Bangladesh's share of the South East Asia-Middle East-West Europe Submarine Telecommunication Cable. Tabreed, which issued a Corporate Sukuk, received a mid BBB/Stable rating from an international investment banker, Trend Capital, reported AMEInfo on 21st February. The report is stating the company's operating EBITDA margin improvement to 39 %. It also affirms the high growth potential for the district cooling business in the regional market. Pakistan would launch its next international bond in the US market, said State Bank of Pakistan governor Dr. Ishrat Husain, reported Business Recorder on 11th February. We could conclude that on this basis the next bond is likely to be of a conventional structure. Jimah Corporate Sukuk, Malaysia RM 5 bn tranches 5-15 years The Star Malaysia reported on 25th February about a new corporate sukuk of JIMAH Energy Ventures, amounting to RM 5 bn by June to build a coal-fired plant. The bond is expected by market sources to sell in a number of tranches carrying maturities of 5 to 15 years. Arrangers are named as AmMerchant Bank, RHB Sakura Merchant, Malaysian International Merchant Bankers and Bank Muamalat. Jimah is owned by the royal family Negri Sembilan. An Agreement was reached last August to sell power from the planned coal-fired plant to Tenaga Nasional Bhd.

7 IslamicFinance.de Executive News March 2005, No. 11 Page 6 DMCC USD 200 mn gold related Khaleejtimes reported on 20th February about the gold related Islamic facility for the Dubai Metals & Commodities Centre (DMCC) with an amount of at least USD 200 mn. The tenor is intended to be 3-5 years with an expected closure end of April. A listing shall be made on the appropriate exhanges in Dubai and overseas. Mandated Lead Arranger is Dubai Islamic Bank, and Standard Bank as well Joint Lead Manager. The investors are granted an option to receive payments demoninated in gold bullion as alternative to USD. Equity / Real Estate Madison MADISON INTERNATIONAL REALTY The Leading Liquidity Provider to U.S. Real Estate Investors Worldwide Secondary Market for US Real Estate Funds, JV etc. Madison International Realty is a specialty real estate investment firm which provides liquidity to foreign and domestic holders of ownership interests in U.S. commercial real estate. Madison Acquires Limited Partnership, Member and Joint Venture Interests From Existing Investors Seeking to Monetize Their Equity Positions $1 Million - $30 Million per Transaction 3-5 Year Holding Periods All Asset Categories A significant amount of U.S. commercial real estate is owned by investors through investment funds, limited partnerships, joint ventures, limited liability companies, syndications, or other joint ownership structures. Frequently, an investor s desire for liquidity does not correspond to the holding period of the underlying asset(s). Non-controlling, partial interests in U.S. commercial real estate are illiquid and difficult to sell. New York Madison International Realty, LLC 410 Park Avenue Suite 820 New York, New York Phone: Fax: RDickerman@MadisonInt.com Frankfurt Madison Real Estate Beteiligungsgesellschaft mbh Mainzer Landstrasse Frankfurt / Main Phone: Fax: MSiefert@MadisonInt.com Amlak Real Estate USD 75 bn placed The Amlak Real Estate fund finalised its goal of USD 75 mn, according to the Khaleej Times on 7 th March. The fund will be investing in Dubai's real estate sector Islamically. The term of the fund is for three years, with a minimum projected Ijarah rate of return of 6 %. The fund became a diversified investor base from the GCC, Mideast, Europe and North America with a varied mix of large and small investors, individual and instituals, Muslims and non-muslims. Average invested amount was USD , with a minimum of USD The average corporate investor invested USD 4 mn. Individual investors took 75 % of the fund's volume.

8 IslamicFinance.de Executive News March 2005, No. 11 Page 7 Saudian real estate Royal Amwaj (Shamil) KSA Real Estate (Unicorn) IPO Al Bilad Sukuk 2006? Michael Gassner Consultancy Consulting Training Roadshows John Salustri reported on GlobeSt.com on 11 th March from the real estate fair MIPIM in Cannes about the first announced Saudi Real Estate fund created for outside investors, called Royal Amwaj Real Estate Development Fund, created to finance the 1 mn sqm waterfront development in the city of Khobar. Targeted IRR is 17 %, Fund Manager Shamil Bank and developer Rikaz Development & Planning. Their CEO, Sheikh Khalid Al Gahtani, is cited stating the need for roughly 1.5 mn housing units in Saudi Arabia in the next two decades. The development calls for more than 40 townhouses, some 314 villas and a boutique hotel of more than 80 rooms. Currently there are 2 Saudi real estate funds open for non Saudi investors; the KSA Real Estate Fund is registered by Unicon Investmentbank as reported already in last October by the Islamic Finance Review of the Bahrain Monetary Agency. The IPO of the Saudi Bilad Bank was oversubcribed on day two, reported Arab News on 24th February. Shares are offered for SR 1.5 bn (USD 400 mn) and received 471,000 applications.1.7 mn Saudis went into the banks to get shares. Subcription was possible by phone and Internet but still most of the applicants were turning up in person to register, which caused trouble among them competing for the application forms. The lack of investment opportunities for big investors and ordinary Saudis leads to an extreme demand in IPOs. Al Bilad plans also to issue an Islamic bond in 2006, reported Khaleej Times on 7th March. Michael Gassner Consultancy Consulting, Training, Roadshows Call gassner@islamicfinance.de Turkish Telecom Etisalat DIB bidders The Turkish Telecom, Türk Telekomünikasyon shall be privatised, wrote Gerd Höhler in the German business daily Handelsblatt on 2nd March. The Turkish Government is looking for a strategic investor. Among the interested consortiums is Etisalat together with Dubai Islamic Bank. The Italian telecom is said to be the favorite as they already hold 40 % of a mobile phone network provider with Turkish Telecom. Leasinglife New Distribution Partner to UK Asset Finance Industry for this newsletter PRUdana fund Islamic bonds Dana Wafiq Fund Bonds / Equity Prudential Unit Trusts Bhd (PUTB) has launched a new Islamic bond fund, PRUdana wafi. PRUdana will be offered at 50 sen per unit during the offer period until March 13. A minimum initial investment of RM 2,000 is required with minimum RM 500 increments for additional investments, reported The Star Malaysia on 1st March. Commerce International Merchant Bankers is offering the Lifetime Dana Wafiq fund, targeting Malaysian investors with a bond fund also investing - as first locally - in the equity market with up to 20 % of its net asset value (NAV) for shariah compliant equities, of which 10 % of the NAV can be invested in warrants of such equities. The fund has a maximum size of 500 mn units, sold initially at RM 1 a unit, reported New Strait Times, Malaysia on 24th February.

9 IslamicFinance.de Executive News March 2005, No. 11 Page 8 Parsoli equity offering in India Sharjah Islamic Bank Capital raised Introductory Workshops Islamic Finance Michael Gassner Consultancy Business Standard on 26th February reported about Parsoli Corporation which is a listed entity. It is planning to enter the capital market with an equity offering again to raise funds to take care of its expansion plans. Parsolig developed an index in India of sharia compliant stocks and offering brokerage services. Also they set up Parsoli (UK) Ltd by a takeover last year. The focus is on Muslim clients, nevertheless the ration is 3:10 regarding Hindu clients. Sharjah Islamic Bank (SIB) formerly named National Bank of Sharjah, received Dh 2 bn worth of subscriptions, 61.3 % above the required amount of Dh 1.2 bn. The issue is closed. On 2nd February an extra ordinary general meeting (EGM) was held and decided to increase the capital from Dh 386 mn to Dh 1 bn, reported Khaleej Times on 3rd March. Introductory Workshops 7 th June 2005 Venue: Hôtel du Rhône, Geneva, Switzerland 6 th September 2005 Venue: Chamber of Commerce, Frankfurt, Germany Rapid Registration: Call gassner@islamicfinance.de Takaful Takaful for Export Bahrain International Insurance Centre Emirates Islamic Bank signed a Bank Master Policy with the Islamic Corporation for the Insurance of Investment and Export Credit (ICIEC), reported Khaleej Times on 1st March. It covers against default of payment either being of commercial (buyer) risk or political (country) risk. The credit limit approved is USD 50 mn. The Bank Master Policy is a risk management tool for banks dealing with Murabaha, Salam, Istisnaa or Ijara dedicated to member countries for the short, medium and longterm activities. It will be used to promote cross border transactions. The Bahrain International Insurance Centre (BIIC) within the Bahrain Financial Harbour (BFH) celebrated the stone-laying ceremony and announced that the Saudi investor, Sheikh Saleh Al-Ali Al Rashed will beinvesting initially USD 50 mn to construct the worldclass insurance facility for the conventional and Islamic Insurance business. Sheikh Saleh Al-Ali Al Rashed holds a number of positions in the industry among those he is Chairman of the Bahrain-based Trade Union Insurance company. The BIIC will come up in close proximity to the Financial Centre with a stand-alone 22-storey tower with a net leasable area of around 19,000 sqm. Best Regards, Michael Saleh Gassner.

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