MANAMA, OCT 13 /DNA/ – The Accounting and Auditing Organization for Islamic Financial Institutions (AAOIFI), the leading global standard-setting body for Islamic banking and finance, today concluded its 24^th Annual Shari’ah Boards Conference, held with the support of the Central Bank of Bahrain (CBB) and a number of sponsoring institutions on 11 and 12 October at the Crowne Plaza Hotel in the Kingdom of Bahrain. The conference brought together around 1,000 Shari’ah scholars, regulators and Islamic finance experts from around the world in person, while more than 4000 participants followed the proceedings online.

The conference is one of the longest-established and most influential gatherings across the global Islamic finance industry. For more than two decades, it has served as a principal platform for harmonising Shari’ah opinion and strengthening Shari’ah and compliance governance across the industry.

The programme comprised five specialised sessions addressing a number of pressing contemporary Fiqh and technical issues, including the harmonisation of the AAOIFI Shari’ah Standards with legal systems, the estimation of the actual direct cost of lending, the controls governing dual-tranche syndicated financings that combine an Islamic tranche with a conventional one, the impact of newly arising circumstances on contracts and financial obligations, and the exchange of value against a binding commitment. The conference concluded with closing remarks, followed by the AAOIFI General Assembly meeting.

The opening ceremony featured keynote speeches by H.E. Shaikh Ebrahim bin Khalifa Al Khalifa, Chairman of the AAOIFI Board of Trustees; H.E. Dr. Ali Yassin Sheikh, Deputy Governor of the Central Bank of Somalia; H.E. Dr. Rabiu Olowo, Executive Secretary and Chief Executive Officer of the Financial Reporting Council of Nigeria; and Mr. Omar Mustafa Ansari, Secretary General of AAOIFI.

In his keynote speech, H.E. Shaikh Ebrahim bin Khalifa Al Khalifa conveyed the greetings of His Majesty King Hamad bin Isa Al Khalifa, King of the Kingdom of Bahrain, and HRH Prince Salman bin Hamad Al Khalifa, Crown Prince and Prime Minister. He underlined the importance of the Shari’ah Boards Conference and noted the significant role it has played in guiding the Islamic finance industry worldwide over the past 23 years. He added that this year’s conference coincides with the 35^th anniversary of AAOIFI’s founding, reflecting a journey marked by excellence and growth in shaping the future of Islamic finance around the globe.

During the conference, AAOIFI signed memoranda of understanding (MoUs) with the Financial Reporting Council of Nigeria, represented by Dr. Rabiu Olowo, Executive Secretary; the Union of Arab Securities Authorities (UASA), UAE, represented by Mr. Jalil Tarif, Secretary General; the Chamber of Auditors of Uzbekistan, represented by Dr. Anvar Tursunov, Chair of the Islamic Finance Methodology Committee under the Chamber; and IDENFO, represented by Mr. Raza Abidi, Co-founder and Managing Director.

The conference came amidst growing international recognition of Islamic finance as a sustainable financial option founded on firm ethical principles. AAOIFI continues to play its central role in developing and harmonising Islamic finance practices, with its standards adopted or recognised by about 50 regulatory and supervisory authorities in more than 40 countries around the world.

The conference partners included the Saudi National Bank (SNB) as major partner; Bahrain Islamic Bank, Eiger Trading, Al Salam Bank, Al Baraka Bank, Abu Dhabi Islamic Bank and DDCAP Group as gold partners; LSEG, the Bahrain Institute of Banking and Finance (BIBF) and the Zayed Fund for Entrepreneurship and Innovation as knowledge partners; and TAIF and CIBE as media partners.

To ensure the widest possible reach, the proceedings, conducted in Arabic, were simultaneously interpreted into English and Urdu, and the conference was streamed live on AAOIFI’s digital platforms, including Zoom, YouTube and Facebook.