HSBC Launches Global Islamic Securities Services
Monday, March 21, 2011

HSBC Securities Services (HSS), in conjunction with HSBC Amanah, the HSBC Group's global Islamic financial services division, has launched HSBC Amanah Securities Services, a Shariah compliant fund platform.

Shariah compliant securities services are now available globally to Islamic investment managers and traditional investment managers managing Islamic funds. HSBC Amanah Securities Services offers Shariah compliant fund accounting and administration, global custody, transfer agency, banking and treasury services in 17 markets across the Middle East, Asia-Pacific, Europe and the Americas.

Germain Birgen, Head of HSBC Amanah Securities Services, says: "While we have serviced our clients in a number of locations with locally implemented Islamic solutions, we now present a globally consistent offering. Customers stand to benefit from our end-to-end Shariah compliant securities services proposition, including access to HSBC Amanah's liquidity, risk management and Shariah compliant investment solutions."

Razi Fakih, Deputy CEO of Amanah adds: "Our team of Shariah scholars have ensured that HSBC Amanah Securities Services is certified by, and strictly aligned to, Shariah principles. The launch of HSBC Amanah Securities Services demonstrates our continuing commitment to offering best in class products and services that are designed to meet the needs of our customers."

HSBC was named Islamic Custodian of the Year by The Asset at the Triple A Islamic Finance Awards 2010, which recognizes and honours leading players in the Islamic finance market. HSBC Amanah recently won 'Best International Islamic Bank' at Euromoney's Islamic Finance Awards 2011 for the second consecutive year.

Islamic investors must abide by Shariah laws, under which investments in companies involved in the alcohol, tobacco, gambling or weapons trades, among others, are banned. Interest is also forbidden under Islamic strictures, meaning that many common conventional finance products such as mortgages are off limits to Islamic investors, although the industry has devised some innovative schemes to get around this problem.

It is believed that Islamic assets are now worth in the region of USD1 trillion, the industry having grown at an annual rate of about 20% in recent years. Despite coming under pressure in 2010, the Islamic finance industry is set to strengthen rapidly in the short- to medium-term, and Rushdi Siddiqui, Global Head of Islamic Finance at Thomson Reuters, told last year's Middle East, North Africa and South Asia Forum on ‘The Challenges Ahead for Islamic Finance’ that it will take just "two to five years" for Islamic Finance to become "a USD2 trillion industry."