UAE-Chinese efforts to employ Islamic banking to serve ‘One Belt, One Road initiative
Great step towards encouraging constructive dialogue of alternatives to enhance growth & sustainability of Islamic banking
Conference to be held in conjunction with ‘Islamic Economic Week’
Global Islamic economy set to reach USD 3 trillion by 2023
HBMSU committed to enhancing knowledge, research & academic exchange between UAE & China
UAE, 29th October 2018 – Hamdan Bin Mohammed Smart University (HBMSU) announced the completion of preparations for the launch of the China-UAE Conference on Islamic Banking and Finance (CUCIBF III) for the third consecutive year under the theme, ‘The potential for participative economy and financial system: growth, development, integration, and cooperation.’ The conference, set to take place on November 7 and 8, 2018, aims to strengthen knowledge, civilizational, cultural and economic exchanges with China. The event is a major milestone in the consolidation of efforts to support Islamic financing between the UAE and China, highlighting shared interest of both parties to employ Islamic economy model to achieve the objectives of the ‘One Belt, One Road’ initiative in resuscitating the global economy and direct it to serve comprehensive and sustainable development. The conference is the result of cooperation between the Ministry of Economy of the UAE; HBMSU’s Dubai Center for Islamic Banking and Finance; Dubai Islamic Economy Development Centre; China Islamic Finance Club; ZhiShang Inter-culture Communication; and Thomson Reuters as a knowledge partner.
The conference will be a great step towards the realization of the vision of His Highness Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice President and Prime Minister of the UAE and Ruler of Dubai, to establish Dubai as the global capital of Islamic economy. The conference is also a reflection to the directives of HH Sheikh Hamdan bin Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Crown Prince of Dubai, Chairman of the Executive Council and General Supervisor of ‘Dubai The Capital of the Islamic Economy’ strategy, who recently launched the Islamic Economic Week to promote effective dialogue on alternatives to promote the growth and sustainability of the Islamic economy. Dubai’s position as a key and influential player on the global economy map complements the Islamic economy system, which is expected to grow eight per cent annually to reach USD 3 trillion by 2023. The agenda of the conference will include in-depth discussions on ways to enhance financial and economic integration; strengthening of historical and economic ties between China and the markets of South and East Asia and the Middle East; as well as the prospects of investment in Islamic finance, which serve the strong economic ties between the UAE and China.
The two-day event will feature several discussions to examine the present and the future of the Islamic financing in both UAE and China, with a focus on the rising Chinese economic influence in the Middle East. The session titled ‘Block-Chain Technologies: Opportunities and Challenges in the Participative Economy’ is expected to engage participants and audience alike, which will also explore the potential of international capital cooperation in private and public sector partnerships, while also highlighting ways to broaden joint financial openness and international strategic alliances in education to support the ambitious Chinese initiative One Belt, One Road. The roundtable session titled ‘Sukuk and Economic Development: Opportunities and Challenges’ will discuss the challenges and opportunities to enhance the contribution of Islamic finance tools to the goals of Belt & Road initiative.
The conference is expected to attract the participation of leading economists, bankers, decision and policy makers, investors and stakeholders of the Islamic economy. The agenda includes extensive discussions on emerging challenges related to the Islamic Economic System and features top official speakers, led by H.E. Abdulla Al Saleh, Under Secretary of Foreign Trade Affairs, UAE Ministry of Economy; Dr. Liu Xiaodong, CEO of Sailing Capital; Dr. Yahia Abdul-Rahman, Chairman of LARIBA Bank, UAS; Chen Lei, CEO of XunLei Information Technology; Huang Yong, Director General – ICC, National Development and Reform Commission of the People’s Republic of China (NDRC); Kevin Koo, Co-founder, Lex Futurus and Su Dongxia, CEO of XBN Cross Border E-Commerce.
The list of international speakers includes Dr. Wang Yiming, Vice President, Shanghai Cross Border E-commerce Association; Dr. Jing Guifei, Dean of Product Traceability, Beijing University of Aeronautics and Astronautics; Alexandra Ivanova, Project Manager, Dubai Participative Economy Development Centre; Professor Humayon Dar, Director General of IRTI, Islamic Development Bank KSA; Zhang Minhua, Director at Shanghai Overseas Education Exchange Center; Dr. Dong Xin, Vice president of China Islamic Finance Club; Sun Guohua, Vice President, Capital City Financial Services Association; Jing Zhihua, Chief International Economic Consultant, China Overseas Engineering Group Co., Ltd.; and Hani Abbas Helmy, AVP – Head of Sharia Review, Dubai Islamic Bank.
Dr. Mansour Al-Awar, Chancellor of HBMSU, said: “The third China-UAE Conference on Islamic Banking and Finance will explore the prospects of bilateral cooperation between the UAE and China in supporting the Islamic economy, which receives great attention from our wise leadership as an ‘integrated system for all aspects of life.’ The third session is particularly important as it follows the UAE-China Week, which was recently held to promote economic, cultural and knowledge cooperation and stimulate civilizational and humanitarian communication between both countries. The conference is inspired by the vision of HH Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice President and Prime Minister of the UAE and Ruler of Dubai, to transform Dubai into a capital of the global Islamic economy, under the patronage of His Highness Sheikh Hamdan bin Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Crown Prince of Dubai and President of HBMSU, which drives us forward to open new channels to explore wider prospects for the advancement of the Islamic economic sector, which is a cornerstone of economic growth and diversification, both locally and globally.
Al Awar added: “The forum is an ideal platform to explore ways to address the current and emerging challenges facing the Islamic finance sector, building on the pioneering experience Dubai has, with the unlimited support of wise leadership, to enable Chinese companies to access investment opportunities, learning and knowledge related to the Islamic economy. We look forward to the sessions that will undoubtedly produce positive outcomes that will serve the path of Islamic banking and finance growth in both countries. ”
Professor Nabil Baydoun, Vice Chancellor for Academic Affairs, HBMSU, explained that the China-UAE Conference on Islamic Banking and Finance is set to take place for the third consecutive year to complement the success of the last two editions. The event provides an important interactive platform to enrich knowledge and exchange expertise related to the Islamic banking and finance industry between the UAE and China. He added: “The third edition of the conference comes at a very important time when Islamic banking is gaining strategic importance as a key pillar that drives economic growth. We must unite and guide international efforts in the service of development to take advantage of the opportunities presented by the twenty-first century and to address its challenges. We look forward to highlighting the achievements of the Emirate of Dubai, which currently plays a leading role in shaping the future of Islamic banking in the world. We are committed to employing our capabilities at HBMSU to provide the technical expertise and practical knowledge required to achieve excellence within the Islamic economy.
The Dubai Islamic Banking and Finance Center, which is related to Hamdan Bin Mohammed Smart University, will hold two sessions on the sidelines of the Islamic Economic Week in Dubai. The first session titled ‘Addressing Funding Challenges in the Next Phase of Belt and Road Initiative’ by professor Nabil Baydoun will discuss the significance of Islamic finance in bridging the financing gap within the Belt and Road Initiative, and will examine the course of the Belt and Road Initiative on many countries and its importance in opening the doors of projects to benefit from the capital markets for Islamic finance and its effects. Meanwhile, the second session ‘Challenges and Opportunities of Islamic Banking’ by Khalid Howladar, Managing Director, Acreditus Dubai will discuss the problems of traditional financing and the use of FinTech, which represents the transition to Islamic Finance v2.0, to bring challenges and profit sharing to the global low-and middle-income communities.