9.00 – 9.05
Welcome
9.05 – 9.15
Welcome Address
The Right Honourable The Lord Mayor of the City of London, William Russell
9.15 – 9.30
Keynote Address
Economic Secretary to the Treasury and City Minister, John Glen MP
9.30 – 10.50
Re-evaluating the Value Proposition of Islamic Financial Services in the UK
Reflecting on an economic recovery and a stable EU departure, is now an opportunity for the UK Islamic financial services industry to reassess its strategy, activities, goals and global competitiveness? Should we ask how the industry has grown and developed over the past five years, how viable Islamic retail, wealth management or pension offerings can be successfully mass positioned in the UK, and how we build more confidence in such products? How do we shift perceptions of Shariah compliant finance from alternative, to complementary and supplementary? How does the recent UK sovereign Sukuk widen the investor base for the UK Islamic capital markets and what does the Bank of England liquidity facility mean for UK Islamic banks? Finally, how can UK Islamic finance continue to collaborate with social, sustainable and responsible finance, across a wide range of activities, to the advantage of both?
Moderator:Stella Cox CBE, Managing Director, DDCAP Group™
Panelists:Abdulkader Thomas, Group CEO, SHAPE™ Knowledge Services
Dr Bello Lawal Danbatta, Secretary-General, Islamic Financial Services Board
Laurie Mayers, Associate Managing Director, Financial Institutions Group, Moody’s Investors Service
Dr Martin Carkett, Policy Lead – Science and Innovation, Tony Blair Institute for Global Change
Dr Usman Chaudry, Chief Risk Officer and Executive Director of the Board, Gatehouse Bank
10.50 – 11.15
Coffee
11.15 – 12.45
Green, Social, Transition and Sustainability-Linked Finance and Investment – Shariah Compliant Options
As host of the 26th UN Climate Change Conference in November, the UK has an opportunity to drive an important agenda. However, alongside ‘Transition to Net Zero’ and decarbonisation targets, what is realistically achievable and what does net zero mean for sectors such as aviation, oil and gas and other asset-based industries? How are Shariah compliant financing products and assets playing a role in this hugely important transition? How also are Shariah compliant assets funding social impact initiatives in the UK, while contributing to the achievement of the UN SDGs and the Paris Accord? Is a UK sovereign sustainability Sukuk viable in the short term? Beyond the UK, what are the views and priorities of overseas asset owners and what opportunities does ESG investing present for further international collaboration and alignment? Finally, where and how do ESG investing and Shariah compliant investing complement each other, and how can we further leverage this important linkage? We ask an expert panel.
Moderator:Farmida Bi, Chair, Europe, Middle East and Asia, Norton Rose Fulbright LLP
Panelists:Allan Walker, Green Finance Specialist, Financial and Professional Services, Department for International Trade
Martina Macpherson, Global Head of ESG Strategy, ODDO BHF Asset Management & Private Equity
Nick Villiers, Director of Sustainable Finance, University of Cambridge Institute for Sustainability Leadership
Rizal Mohamed Ali, Vice-President, Responsible Investment, Retirement Fund (Incorporated), Malaysia, (KWAP)
Dr Simon Lord, Independent Sustainability Adviser
12.45 – 13.00
Presentation
Rofiya Hussain, Chief Product Officer, nomo
Download Presentation Slides Here
13.00 – 13.45
Luncheon
13.45 – 15.00
Driving Development in UK Islamic Corporate Banking and Capital Markets
What will the second Sovereign Sukuk achieve and what does it represent for UK Islamic financial services, and UK Islamic banks in particular? What does the UK offer as a listing destination for sovereign, supranational and corporate Sukuk issuance, as well as other products such as investment trusts and ETFs? Is there an effective secondary market in the UK for Sukuk? How can Shariah compliant instruments, including Sukuk, be further applied to the funding of alternative asset classes and sustainable assets? How is technology such as blockchain shaping and influencing Islamic corporate banking and capital markets, considering notable recent innovations by GCC Islamic banks? Finally, how can global and domestic incentives, regulation and standards applicable to the issue of Shariah compliant financing products, be more effectively aligned for the good of the market?
Moderator:Natalie Schoon, CEO, Redmoney Consulting
Panelists:Arshadur Rahman, Manager, Bank of England
Ayman Sejiny, CEO, The Islamic Corporation for the Development of the Private Sector
Hichem Bouqniss, Executive Director, Business Operations, The International Islamic Liquidity Management Corporation
Razvan Dumitrescu, Principal, Local Currency and Capital Markets Development, European Bank for Reconstruction and Development
15.00 – 16.00
Investors Roundtable: UK Opportunities for Shariah Compliant Direct Real Estate and Private Equity Investment
Through a panel of international investment professionals, we explore current and potentially innovative Shariah compliant investment types and asset classes. What are the latest opportunities and demands for Shariah compliant direct investment into UK real estate market? Considering the evolution of working practices in the UK, what is the future of the office and what are the implications for UK commercial real estate investment? With an active private equity market, what are potential targets for investment into the UK market and what structures are being employed? Aside from these, what new and interesting asset classes have presented themselves in the past year?
Moderator:Celia de Anca, Director, Saudi-Spanish Center for Islamic Economics and Finance, IE Business School
Panelists:Alisher Djumanov, Managing Partner, Bukhara Wealth
Andy Thomson, Head of Real Estate, Bank of London & The Middle East
Ayda Habboush, Partner, Trowers & Hamlins
Trevor Norman, Director – Islamic Finance and Funds, VG
16.00 – 17.00
The Evolution of UK Financial Technology
The IFN Fintech Landscape identifies 39 Islamic fintech providers in the UK, making it the world’s largest Shariah fintech centre. Considering this, how do we assess the rapid evolution of the sector? What is the value proposition and market positioning of UK Islamic fintech offerings and what can Shariah compliant challenger banks learn from their conventional counterparts? How can UK Islamic fintech fulfil its potential through offering Shariah compliant financial solutions to minorities, particularly in retail finance, pensions and wealth management? How can traditional Islamic financial institutions effectively maintain competitiveness in these product areas through innovation and investment? What are the potential implications, if any, of the findings of the Kalifa Report for UK Islamic financial technology companies? What is the potential for a government-sponsored tech growth fund and how would this drive innovation? We seek the views of an expert panel.
Moderator:Vineeta Tan, Managing Editor, Islamic Finance news
Panelists:Andrew Cunningham, Founder and Managing Director, Darien Analytics
Anouar Adham, Founder and CEO, CrowdToLive
Areeb Siddiqui, Founder and CEO, KESTRL
Sharjil Ahmed, Co-Founder and CEO, Cykube
Zaineb Sefiani, Founder, Carrera Learning