The inaugural IFN Issuers Forum, a one-day forum taking place in Dubai will bring together the industry’s leading issuers, arrangers and financial intermediaries to discuss innovation in transactions, asset classes and Shariah rules.
The forum will bring the industry’s elite to address current trends in Shariah compliant capital raising, analyze the key features of global landmark deals and recognize highly successful transactions in the global Islamic debt capital markets.
Agenda
09:00 - 09:10
Welcome Remarks
09:10 - 09:25
Keynote Address Abdulla Al Awar – CEO, Dubai Islamic Economy Development Center
09:25 - 09:40
Keynote Address Dr Mohammad Fetanat – President, Securities and Exchange Organization of Iran
09:40 - 10:40
Raising Capital in the Current Economic Environment
How will recent economic events change corporate strategy on capital-raising?
How are monetary policies and financial compliance issues affecting how Shariah compliant capital is raised across the globe?
Non-traditional funding sources: A look at what current trends in capital raising are appealing to corporate and sovereign issuers
What is the appeal of increasingly popular structures such as perpetual, covered and convertible Sukuk amongt issuers?
In which markets are Islamic issuers most likely to raise Shariah compliant financing? A review of major financial markets globally
Moderator:
Qasim Aslam – Partner and Head of Islamic Finance – Middle East, Dentons
Panelist:
Jawad Ali – Managing Partner, Middle East Offices, King & Spalding Linar Yakupov – President, Islamic Business and Finance Development Fund & President, Association of Regional Investment Agencies, Russian Federation Mohd Izani Ghani – Executive Director and CFO, Khazanah Nasional, Malaysia Robert Scharfe – CEO, Luxembourg Stock Exchange
10:40 - 11:05
Coffee & Networking
11:05 - 11:20
Keynote Address Dr Bambang PS Brodjonegoro – Minister of Finance, Republic of Indonesia
11:20 - 12:00
Deal Dialogue: Emirates Airlines’s ECA-backed Sukuk Perspectives of issuer, arrangers and legal counsel
Gordon Welsh – Head of Aviation, UK Export Finance Gregory Man – Partner, Norton Rose Fulbright Mohammed Dawood – Managing Director, Global Head of Sukuk Financing, HSBC Nirmal Govindadas – Senior Vice-President & Group Treasurer, Emirates Group Qudeer Latif – Partner and Global Head of Islamic Finance Practice, Clifford Chance, the UAE
12:00 - 12:45
A Look at New Structures in Current Sukuk Transactions
Will covered Sukuk become a trend? What challenges exist in the structuring and rating of covered Sukuk?
A review of the applicability and success of recent structures: Convertible, exchangeable, perpetual and hybrid Sukuk
Will we see an increase in the use of intangible assets?
Rise of sovereign Sukuk in non-Muslim jurisdictions: What impact will this have on corporate Sukuk pipelines in these markets?
Cross-border Sukuk: Will demand for these structures lead to much-needed harmonisation?
Tradability of Sukuk: Are stakeholders creating and maintaining active secondary markets?
Moderator:
Khalid Howladar – Global Head, Islamic Finance, Moody´s Investors Service, the UAE
Panelists:
Ahsan Ali – Managing Director and Head of Islamic Origination, Standard Chartered Bank Andy Cairns – Managing Director, Global Head of Debt Origination and Distribution, National Bank of Abu Dhabi Ayman A Khaleq – Managing Partner, Morgan, Lewis & Bockius Mohamad Safri Shahul Hamid – Senior Managing Director and Deputy CEO, CIMB Islamic
12:45 - 14:00
Luncheon
14:00 - 14:40
Alternative Financing: Standing Out from The Crowd In a reaction to the restrictions of the traditional banking sector, recent years have seen the rapid rise of 'alternative financing' - comprising a surprisingly wide range of models including equity funding/factoring, micro lending, peer-to-peer lending and of course the poster child, crowdfunding. Especially appropriate for small businesses seeking to obtain diversification and efficiency in their fundraising activities, entrepreneurs and investors have increasingly developed new options using technology, creativity and relationship-building to assemble options above and beyond the standard bank financing model. In this innovative session, IFN looks beyond crowdfunding to discuss the expanding opportunities in alternative financing that are opening up the world for SMEs - and how the Islamic market can take advantage of them for its own progress and development.
Craig Moore – Founder & CEO, Beehive Kazim Ali – Head of Corporate Banking, Noor Bank, the UAE Mansoor Shakil – Director, Fajr Capital Waleed Esbaitah – Founder & CEO, Durise
14:40 - 15:10
Raising Capital: State of the Market from an Issuers Perspective
Key considerations for debut issuers
Current market trends from a product, structuring and pricing perspective
Strategic considerations for issuers: Geographical and investors-type diversification
What is driving the surge of Islamic capital raising in Saudi Arabia, the UAE and Turkey?
Moderator:
Rizwan Kanji – Partner, King & Spalding
Panelists:
Hitesh Asarpota – Director and Head, Debt Capital Markets, Emirates NBD Capital Hussein Hassan – Managing Director, Global Head of Islamic Finance, JP Morgan Chase Bank Mohsin Shaikh Sehu Mohamed – Director and Head of Islamic Finance, Al Madina Investments, Oman Sinovuyo Mpakama – Senior Analyst, Debt Issuance & Management, National Treasury of South Africa
15:10 - 15:25
Presentation: Why have Healthcare, Education and Technology become Preferred Asset Classes? Nabil Issa – Partner, King & Spalding
15:25 - 16:05
Assessing the Global Pipeline for Infrastructure Sukuk As an increasing number of non-traditional Sukuk issuers begin to assess the inclusion of Sukuk in their monetary policies and with infrastructure spending in developing countries set to reach US $1 trillion per year, much has been said about the use of Sukuk in financing infrastructure projects.
What’s in the global pipeline for infrastructure and project Sukuk? Where are we likely to see future mega-deals?
How will the current economic climate and commodity prices impact how infrastructure deals are done?
Will the formation of the Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank spur large-scale project Sukuk?
Outlook for Shariah compliant financing of green-energy projects
Moderator:
Bashar Al-Natoor – Global Head, Islamic Finance, Fitch Ratings
Panelists:
Lim Say Cheong – Executive Vice-President and Head of Investment Banking Group, Al Hilal Bank Mustafa Aramaz – Senior Vice President and Group Head – International & Investment Banking, Kuveyt Türk Participation Bank Steve Perry – Global Head of Debt Markets and Syndications, FGB Syed Amir Ali – Senior Executive Vice-President and Group Head, Corporate & Investment Banking, Meezan Bank, Pakistan