SHARIAH FUND MAKES LONDON’S RENTED SECTOR GLOBAL

London, 27 Dzulqa’dah 1436/11  September 2015 (MINA) – With the rapid development of the Shariah compliant investment sector on the world’s stage, “London Central Portfolio’s (LCP) third Shariah fund, London Central Apartments III, makes central London’s rented sector truly global, according to The Telegraph digital.

Faizal Karbani, founder and CEO of wealth manager Simply Shariah, says, “LCP is providing access to a unique and attractive asset class while ensuring the fund remains within the bounds of Shariah statute.

 “As a bricks-and-mortar product, often preferred by Muslim investors, the fund is a perfect recipe for us,” he said, Islamic News reported.

Shariah-compliant investment has had a presence in the UK for more than 30 years, but only in the past decade has the sector developed rapidly.

Although still a fraction of the global investment market, at around 1pc of the world’s financial assets, Islamic finance is now estimated to be worth £1.3trn, an increase of 150pc since 2006.

The London Stock Exchange (LSE) already boasts 53 Sukuk (Islamic bonds) issues, raising more than $38 billion. It has a mounting presence in Shariah-compliant Exchange Traded Funds (ETFs) too, with seven available based on Islamic indices.

In addition, Takaful (Islamic insurance) has reached a new high in the UK, with premiums estimated to have reached $30bn in 2012.

At the first world Islamic economic forum outside the Middle East, held in London in 2013, British Prime Minister David Cameron made clear the government’s position on this global market, stating, “I don’t just want London to be a great capital of Islamic finance in the Western world, I want London to stand alongside Dubai and Kuala Lumpur as one of the great capitals of Islamic finance anywhere in the world.” (T/Imt/R04)

 Mi’raj Islamic News Agency (MINA)