Islamic finance in Singapore & University Bank financial results

The managing director of the Monetary Authority of Singapore, Teo Swee Lian, said that the city-state is encouraging Islamic finance to develop by adapting its laws & regulations to make it easier for Islamic financial institutions to operate. However, the direction of the development will be left to companies operating in the sector. Currently, Singapore has $1.32 billion in Shari'ah-compliant property funds and $500 million of Islamic insurance funds (takaful).

"It will be difficult for us to do anything big in terms of retail [Islamic banking], because we don't have a very large critical mass of consumers who require it, unlike Malaysia, for instance. It will probably be more wholesale banking, for institutions, for fund management, for capital markets."

University Bank the parent company of the only Islamic bank in the U.S., University Islamic Financial Corp. released Q1 results. Community and Islamic banking reported a net loss of $19,000 in the first quarter of 2007 (compared with a net loss of $36,000 in the same period last year).