Al Tamimi & Company Advocates and Legal Consultants, one of the leading law firms in the Arabian Gulf region, will co-chair the upcoming International Bar Association’s (IBA) ‘Islamic Finance in the Middle East’ conference.

The IBA, which is the world’s leading organisation of international legal practitioners, bar associations and law societies, has recently opened its new Middle East office in Dubai International Financial Centre (DIFC) in order to keep abreast of local and regional developments.

Banking professionals and legal experts who will gather on January 13 will discuss pertinent issues including: Islamic banking techniques and their conformity with the Sharia Laws, derivatives and Sharia complications; securisation and Sharia compliance; Islamic financing techniques underpinning sukuk structures and GCC laws versus Sharia Law.

Partner and head of the banking and finance department at Al Tamimi & Company Husam Hourani will deliver the opening remarks and serve as moderator during the conference.

“Islamic finance has grown considerably during the past decade. In a world where conventional interest-based finance is the dominant framework, Islamic banking faces many challenges that must be addressed,” said Hourani. “Currently, the Islamic finance market is estimated at Dh1.84 trillion ($500 billion) worldwide with an annual growth of 10 to 15 per cent.”

In the last decade, Islamic finance saw as an increasing number of individuals and companies choosing to finance their projects in accordance with Sharia principles. Experts in the Gulf Corporation Council (GCC) attribute this growth to the energised economic boom there which is acting as a catalyst for the burgeoning of the Islamic financing sector.

According to a recent Middle East Economic Digest (MEED) report, “The value of Islamic project finance deals is projected to grow to Dh110,000 million ($30,000 million) in 2012.”

More than 20 papers will be presented in the conference cover different topics include:  the challenges facing the Islamic finance industry, the growth potential for Islamic finance in the GCC, the regulatory and compliance issues affecting the development of Islamic financial markets, derivatives and Sharia complications securitisation, Sharia compliance, the developments in the sukuk market in the region, and the GCC Laws versus Sharia Law.

The conference will also be co-chaired by Allen & Overy, a leading London-based international law firm. – TradeArabia News Service