Ahmad Mukarrami Ab Mumin is currently heading the Shariah Division, RHB Islamic Bank since 2011. He began his career with CIMB Islamic Bank, and thereafter assumed a managerial position at the Shariah Department in HSBC Amanah before moving to RHB Islamic Bank. Graduated with a Bachelor’s Degree in Shariah & Law from Universiti Malaysia, he pursued and completed LL.M (Business Law) from IIUM before venturing into the industry. More than often, he is invited as a guest speaker and presenter within the area of Islamic Banking and Islamic Capital Market. He also contributes to the education field being an adjunct lecturer for several local and international universities. He has written various articles inwellknown magazines including Islamic Finance News (IFN), Global Islamic Finance Magazine (Ask Shariah Expert Column) and the New Horizon Magazine.

Johan Lee is the managing partner of J Lee & Associates, a legal firm in Malaysia. He graduated with a Bachelor of Laws (Hons) degree from International Islamic University Malaysia. He also holds a Master of Comparative Laws degree, a postgraduate diploma in Shariah and legal practice both from International Islamic University Malaysia and a Master of Arts degree in economics for competition law from King’s College London. He is currently a qualified member of the Chartered Institute of Arbitrators in the UK as well as a mediator of the Malaysian Bar. He is an advocate and solicitor of the High Court of Malaya. Proficient in English, Malay and Mandarin, he is also the first Shariah practitioner of Chinese origins ever admitted by the Shariah court. His current practice includes corporate and commercial law, competition law, compliance matters and Islamic corporate finance-related matters.

Noor Azian Ismail has 12 years’ vast experience in the audit function for the banking, investment banking and asset management industry. She is currently the Head of Shariah Audit & Process Review Section of the internal audit department at Bank Muamalat Malaysia. Azian began her carrier with Mayban Finance in year 2001 as an Internal Auditor for branch audit functions. In year 2004, due to the merger of Mayban Finance with Maybank Group, she was assigned to audit the head office functions under the Group Internal Audit Division of Maybank. She then later diversified her internal audit skills in Investment Banking and Asset Management audit functions under the same Maybank Group. In year 2009, she left Maybank and expanded her career as an Investment Compliance Manager at RHB Islamic for one year. In year 2010, due to a regulatory requirement imposed by the Bank Negara Malaysia (BNM), she was given the responsibility to establish and lead the Shariah audit functions for Bank Muamalat Malaysia. Since then, she is assisting Bank Muamalat in strengthening the Shariah Governance and Shariah Control functions for the Bank.

Nik Shahrizal has over 12 years of experience in the financial sector, both in the UK and in Malaysia. He specializes in the area of Islamic finance and is part of the firm’s Global Islamic Finance Team (GIFT). Nik was the project lead for a Shariah audit engagement in one of the largest banks in Malaysia. He has been involved in the Shariah audit initiatives for PwC, involving Shariah audits and discussions with the regulators and industry players on the Shariah audit framework. In addition, Nik has also been involved in a number of assurance and advisory engagements for Islamic banks. This includes financial due diligence for the acquisition of an Islamic bank in the region, strategic assessment of a new Islamic bank set-up and Basel II assessments for two major Islamic banks in the country. He has also performed an operational assessment for a conventional bank’s transition to an Islamic bank. His experience also includes review of the enterprise-wide risk management (ERM) framework from a Shariah perspective – assessing the Shariahrelated risks in the institution and embedding the Shariah risk assessment process into the existing ERM framework for his client.

Dr Rusni Hassan is an associate professor and the deputy dean at the IIUM Institute of Islamic Banking and Finance, International Islamic University Malaysia (IIUM). She graduated with a Bachelor of Laws degree (Honors), a Bachelor of Laws degree (Shariah) (First Class), a Master of Comparative Laws degree and a PhD in law. She is a member of the following: Shariah Advisory Council for Bank Negara Malaysia, Association of Islamic Banking Institutions Malaysia, Shariah Committee for HDFC and HDC Maldives. She is a registered Shariah advisor with the Securities Commission Malaysia and is the secretary for the Association of Shariah Advisors in Islamic Finance Malaysia and the International Council of Islamic Finance Educators.

Dr Rusni has spoken extensively in seminars, workshops, conferences and trainings on various Islamic finance issues. Her publications include books on Islamic banking and Takaful, Islamic banking under Malaysian law, corporate governance of Islamic financial institutions and many articles in local and international journals. She has received awards such as ‘Promising Researcher’ at IIUM in 2012. Her works and contribution to Islamic finance have also been recognized internationally when she was listed among the ‘Top 10 Women in Islamic Finance’ by CPI Financial in 2013. She also received the award of ‘Most Talented Women Professional in Islamic Banking’ at the Asia Islamic Banking Excellence Awards, CMO Asia in 2014.