Islamic Financial Services
Driven by rising demand for new sources of financing in the face of weak oil prices, Kuwait’s Islamic financial services (IFS) sector is increasingly considered to be a core component of the nation’s development. The industry’s steadily improving profile is largely a result of the government’s efforts to shore up the sector’s reputation over the past decade, most recently by rolling out new sukuk (Islamic bond) regulations in November 2015. As a consequence, local Islamic banks, investment companies and sharia-compliant insurers have gained market share at a rapid pace, in the process turning Kuwait into one of the world’s leading IFS markets.
This chapter contains an interview with Mazin Al Nahedh, CEO, Kuwait Finance House.