Islamic Finance addresses the financial system that was once regarded as a regional novelty but is now growing exponentially and is poised to become a “parallel” financial system to that of Western capital markets.  This course begins with both the religious foundations (Shariah) and historical antecedents of modern Islamic finance and then goes on to discuss modern Islamic finance products and the enormous recent and projected growth of assets devoted exclusively to such products.  Fundamentals covered include concepts such as halal (allowed), haram (forbidden), sukuk (Islamic bonds), ijara (Islamic leasing) and modaraba and morabaha (profit sharing techniques).  Islamic finance is considered in the geopolitical context of the enormous expansion in Arab and Iranian reserves as a result of sustained oil prices in excess of $70/barrel and the concomitant rise of an elite class of Western trained Islamic financiers.  Combined with a rise in Islamic fundamentalism, the result is that Arab and Iranian investors are less willing to follow Western models and are now able to construct a well-funded parallel financial system based on Shariah.  Attention is also devoted to the role of Islamic financial centers such as Dubai and Kuala Lumpur. 

Course Objectives:
At the end of this course, participants will have a well-rounded understanding of the importance of the rapidly growing field of Islamic Finance. More specifically, they will have a better grasp on:

• The religious underpinnings to the Islamic financial industry
• The fundamental principles of Islamic finance
• The implications that extreme oil prices have had on the mindsets and behavior of Islamic financiers
• The development of a parallel financial system to the Western structure

Who Should Attend: Analysts & other interested in learning about Islamic Finance
Length of Course: One (1) day
Instructor: Jim Rickards

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