Having tracked the development of Islamic finance for a decade, the latest results in the The Banker's Top Islamic Financial Institutions ranking for 2016 reveal a sector that has enjoyed admirable growth compared with its conventional peers. James King reports.
As correlations break down and hard currencies stumble, corporates have been forced to reassess their approach to foreign exchange risk. More favourable accounting treatment of options could help them achieve their longer term strategies. Danielle Myles explores why.
Asia's rapid development over the past two decades has brought the continent to the brink of becoming the world's economic powerhouse. However, its infrastructure shortfall – believed to be worth $6500bn between 2015 and 2020 – is threatening to hold the region back, unless it can scrape together the required funding to fill this gap.
The launch of the Asean Economic Community has opened up a new wave of opportunities. However, with Western banks pulling back from Asia and domestic banks all-powerful in the region's more developed markets, it may only be the Greater Mekong region that sees any discernible change to its financial landscape in the near future.
With its unresolved dispute with Saudi Arabia over the so-called 'neutral zone' rumbling on, record-low oil prices and the possibility of an Organisation of the Petroleum Exporting Countries-imposed production freeze, Kuwait's oil industry is under pressure. Still, the country remains committed to investments in the sector.
Ahead of the 2016 Asian Development Bank annual meeting in Frankfurt, the president of the ADB discusses China’s slowdown and reform agenda while underscoring that other parts of Asia – such as India – are still growing strongly. Interview by Stefania Palma.
Kuwait's economy has come under pressure in the past year, mainly due to falling oil prices. But, with the help of healthy sovereign reserves, the country has weathered the difficulties well, and the government remains committed to its long-term development plan.
There is a positive mood in Kuwait's banking sector, thanks in no small part to the government's healthy balance sheet and its commitment to project spending. However, the low oil price environment and cooling real estate market loom large on the horizon.
The Banker and the Nikkei Asian Review are now sister publications following the Nikkei’s acquisition of the Financial Times in December. We are delighted to present this joint report to coincide with the annual meeting of the Asian Development Bank in Frankfurt in early May.
Kuwait boasts one of the most respected Islamic finance markets in the world. But ever keen to move with the times, the country is establishing a capital markets authority law designed to develop the domestic sukuk market, one of many recent boosts the industry has received.
The UK's Senior Managers Regime seeks to formalise responsibility for risk, yet the threat of cyber attack sits outside of traditional risk governance standards, and means that protecting against such attacks will require a rethink of the traditional 'three lines of defence' model.