
2nd October 2023
Kuala Lumpur
#IFNASIA2023
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LIMITED / EXCLUSIVE SEATING
About The Forum
Now in its 18th year, the IFN Asia Forum is IFN’s flagship event which has become a ‘must attend’ business event for Islamic finance professionals from around the world. It is a confluence of the brightest and most influential personalities of the industry, bringing quality and relevant discussions to the stage and invaluable networking opportunities.
Asia is recognized by the world as the bastion of Islamic finance housing the world’s most populous Muslim nation and largest Islamic finance market. With the support of regulators and multilateral Islamic finance organizations, IFN Asia Forum 2023 will take place at the heart of Islamic finance in the region, Kuala Lumpur.
As the center of Islamic capital-raising activities by volume and its diversity of instruments and issuers, the Forum will embody themes exploring Shariah financing through the banking and capital markets from both the perspectives of issuers and facilitators.
An Introduction to 2023
We were delighted to be back in the conference rooms in 2022 following a near two-year hiatus, and it seems you were too.
We saw capacity audiences for the UK, Asia and Islamic Sustainable Finance & Investment Forums, and strong numbers everywhere else. We believe 2023 will surpass pre-pandemic numbers in all our core markets.
We have also learned much this past year and will implement the following:
- The Forum format is essential in certain markets, and will remain in London, Muscat and Kuala Lumpur in 2023.
- Our exclusive Dialogues have been warmly welcomed by all those participating and attending, and we will increase this offering in 2023, with events in Dubai, Riyadh, Doha, Jakarta, and Manama.
- Live streaming has not taken off as many expected. However, watching recorded content has skyrocketed — certainly for us anyway. So, all Forums will be recorded and posted online for our global audience within a week of each event.
- But, as our audiences enjoy recorded content, we will be organizing various country and sector ‘OnAir’ events and posting online for all to view.
- Islamic sustainable is big. Our ISFI Forum in Kuala Lumpur in 2022 was outstanding and will remain for 2023. And, with COP28 in the UAE in 2023, we are introducing the ISFI Dialogues, which will be held in Dubai.
We are excited for the new year and look forward to welcoming you to our events and assisting in the continued global growth of the Islamic financial markets.

#IFNFORUMS2023
Forum Agenda
9.00 – 9.10
Welcome Address
9.10 – 9.20
Keynote Address
Adnan Zaylani Mohamad Zahid, Assistant Governor, Bank Negara Malaysia
9.20 – 10.30
Key Strategic Economic Drivers in Southeast Asia: The Halal Economy and the Islamic Financial Services Industry
Malaysia’s top-down and ‘Islamic first’ strategy have been highly successful as Islamic financial services continue to flourish. What strategies at a governmental, regulatory and institutional level will maintain this success? What do digital transformation strategies mean for the sector, and what is the ongoing influence of value-based intermediation? With nearly 30 service providers, is consolidation among Malaysian financial institutions likely? What does Malaysia currently offer the world in terms of Halal certification, finance, education, and supply chain enablement? What environment is conducive for the continued growth of Halal ecosystems, infrastructure and value chains? Where does Islamic finance play a role in the development of the Halal economy, and are Islamic financial institutions well positioned to serve the corporate and SME sector? Does Islamic finance need to build appeal and maintain competitiveness in this segment? We ask an expert panel.
Panelists:Dr Bello Lawal Danbatta, Secretary-General, Islamic Financial Services Board
Mohamed Abida, Head, Islamic Development Bank (IsDB) Center of Excellence in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia
10.30 – 11:00
Coffee
11:00 – 12:00
Blueprint for the Future: An Ecosystem for the Successful Development & Distribution of Islamic Financial Services
How will the design, development and distribution of digital Islamic financial services continue to evolve in the near term? How significant is continued transformation among the traditional providers of Islamic financial products? How important are financial regulators in creating an environment for the enhancement of the financial services sector’s digital infrastructure? How is the development of systems and software for Islamic financial institutions driving scale, integrity and efficiency? What are regional, scalable opportunities for digital Islamic financial offerings? How is technology helping provide banking products for underserved and untapped segments such as the young, SMEs, and B2B markets? Is a banking model based on simpler, customer centric services a reality?
Panelist:Rafiza Ghazali, Director, Digital Banking, KAF Investment Bank
12:00 – 13:00
Centre of Excellence: Malaysia as a Centre for Innovative Islamic Capital Market and Structured Finance Products
How does Malaysia fully leverage on its reputation for innovative structured financial markets and products, and cement its position as an arranging centre for international Shariah compliant transactions? What is the real potential for applying Waqf features to Islamic capital market structures? Do Tier-1 and Tier-2 Sukuk offer Islamic financial institutions the most flexible and efficient way of satisfying regulatory capital requirements, and do we feel the same about AT1 issuances as we did before? How do we ensure key issuances continue to have Islamic tranches, and that Islamic finance is a mainstream way of funding large projects? Examining further innovation in Shariah compliant structured products and where they might be applied: the example of repo and repo to maturity. Assessing the continued importance of Tawarruq within Islamic capital market structures, and the growing influence of alternatives such as Wakalah. How do we capitalize on the rising significance of the Islamic pre-IPO, IPO, ECM, and corporate finance market?
Panelists:Basheer Ahmad, Listing Authority, Markets, Dubai Financial Services Authority
Dr Mohamad Zabidi Ahmad, Regional Chief Representative, DDCAP Group
13:00 – 14:15
Luncheon
14:15 – 15:15
Positioning Malaysia as a Leader in Ethical and Shariah Compliant Asset and Investment Management
Does Malaysia still enjoy a competitive advantage in the facilitation of ethically and socially responsible investment management? What strategic steps should be taken to grow Shariah compliant assets under management domestically? How do we assess the growing influence and potential offered by Waqf-featured funds such as REITs and ETFs? What is the continuing role of technology in the development of Shariah compliant investment management solutions, and is the sector successfully democratising access for retail investors? How do systematic tilts in portfolio allocation from Shariah screening affect how ESG integration is approached, and how significant are initiatives such as the FTSE4Good Bursa Malaysia Index? Lastly, how do fund and asset managers ensure effective liquidity risk management processes, and do managers require clarity on Shariah governance guidelines?
15:15 – 16:15
Alternative Funding, Digital Marketplace Financing and the Development of Digital Assets
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?
Elain Lockman, CEO and Co-Founder, Ata Plus
Jun Jie Yoon, Founder and CEO, Capsphere SME Financing
Forum Keynote

Adnan Zaylani Mohamad Zahid
Assistant Governor, Bank Negara MalaysiaForum Speakers

Basheer Ahmad
Listing Authority, Markets, Dubai Financial Services Authority
Dr Bello Lawal Danbatta
Secretary-General, Islamic Financial Services Board
Elain Lockman
CEO & Co-Founder, Ata Plus
Jun Jie Yoon
Founder and CEO, Capsphere SME Financing
Dr Mohamad Zabidi Ahmad
Regional Chief Representative, DDCAP Group
Mohamed Abida
Head, Islamic Development Bank (IsDB) Center of Excellence in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia
Rafiza Ghazali
Director, Digital Banking, KAF Investment BankAdvisory Board

Dean Gillespie
CEO, Islamic Bank of Australia
Joanne Rodrigues
Group Chief Financial Officer, Affin Bank
Marcel Omar Papp
Head of Retakaful, Swiss Re
Michael Orzano
Global Head of Equity Indices, S&P Dow Jones Indices
Mohamed Shehzad Bin Mohamed Islam
CEO, Ethis Investment - EthisX
Mohammed Alim
CEO and Cofounder, IBF Net Group
Mustafa Aydemir
Senior Investment Analyst, Saturna Malaysia
Nicholas Edmondes
Partner, Trowers & Hamlins
Raja Teh Maimunah
CEO, Aeon Digital Bank
Suhazi Reza Selamat
CEO, UOB Islamic Asset Management
Tan Pheng Leong
CFO, Bank Islam Brunei DarussalamIn The News

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The Previous IFN Asia Forum
IFN Asia Forum 2022
The IFN Asia Forum remains the region’s largest Islamic finance gathering. An annual ‘must attend’ business event for Islamic finance professionals from around the world, IFN Asia is a confluence of the brightest and most influential personalities of the industry, bringing quality and relevant discussions to the stage and invaluable networking opportunities.
Asia is recognized by the world as the bastion of Islamic finance housing the world’s most populous Muslim nation and largest Islamic finance market. With the support of regulators and multilateral Islamic finance organizations, the 17th IFN Asia Forum took place at the heart of Islamic finance in the region, Kuala Lumpur.
As the center of Islamic capital-raising activities by volume and its diversity of instruments and issuers, the Forum embodied themes exploring Shariah financing through the banking and capital markets from both the perspectives of issuers and facilitators.
About REDmoney Events

REDmoney events designs, organizes and hosts industry-leading conferences, forums, roadshows, seminars and dialogues focusing on the Islamic financial markets across a global, regional and national level. Leveraging an exceptional network of the industry’s elite and supported by the expertise of the REDmoney publishing and seminars divisions, REDmoney Events are able to provide access to a unique array of influential speakers, panelists and participants from a cross-section of the global industry to debate the most significant issues affecting the Shariah compliant financial markets.
REDmoney events are differentiated by their complimentary yet qualified attendance structure, ensuring the highest quality of both delegates and contributors. Comprehensive and cutting-edge, attendance ensures exclusive access to the leaders in their field across all sectors and markets.
TThe annual IFN Asia and IFN UK Forums are categorically recognized as their continent’s leading industry events since their inception in 2006 and 2007 respectively. The Dialogues series has also become an integral element of the REDmoney events series and have cemented their position as leading, must-attend, events. In 2022, we introduced the Islamic Sustainable Finance & Investment Forum, which was an enormous success, and will become a mainstay.
For any inquiries contact us
Our team will be glad to answer any questions you may have about this event.