Advisory
Research
Training
IFIECO offers a range of services to its clients in its core areas of advisory, research and training, in the following technical fields of of expertise:
- Areas of Expertise
- Business Segments & Functions
- Core Services
- Economics of Development
- Macroeconomics research and policy
- Stock market and financial markets development & reform
- Sukuk and syndicated finance
Islamic Finance
Business Segments & Functions
- Investment Banking
- Sukuk & Syndicated Finance
- Corporate
- SME
- Retail
- Trade Finance
- Treasury & FI
- Core Banking & IT
- Operations
- Takaful
Core Services:
- Customized Islamic Finance Business Solutions
- Product Structuring
- Transaction Structuring & Sharia Issues
- Transaction Restructuring & Defaults
- Risk management (all types)
- Sharia-legal documentation review
- Review and reform of systems (operations, IT, HR, etc)
Sharia Consultations
Sharia Consultations
Providing detailed advice, analysis and solutions in relation to both products and transactions to help clients achieve Sharia compliance in a robust and sustainable manner.
Business Units
- Investment Banking
- Sukuk
- Syndicated Finance
- Trade Finance
Core Function
- Corporate
- SME
- Retail
- Takaful
- Treasury & FI
- Core Banking
- Operations
- HR
Key IFIECO Services:
- Customized Islamic Finance solutions
- Product development
- Product structuring & restructuring
- Transaction structuring
- Risk management (all types)
- Sharia-Legal Documentation Review
- Restructuring & defaults
- Transactions facing distress
- Advising on core banking and IT systems
- Advising on operations systems
Sharia Compliance
Sharia Compliance
Sharia Compliance is the primary factor underpinning the overall operation
of Islamic banks. We offer specific services to meet all the requirements of
Sharia compliance. A summarized list is given below.
IFIECO is fully equipped to provide any other services which the client may
need, which can be ascertained and confirmed after understanding the client’s
specific requirements.
Key IFIECO Services:
- Sharia review and analysis of transactions
- Sharia amendment of transactions and contracts
- Design and improvement of policies & procedures to ensure adherence to approved
- Sharia structures, products and systems
- Compilation, amendment and/or review of manuals and SOP documents
- Offering bespoke support to the Sharia Audit function
- Numerous other services available on demand
Sharia Audit
Sharia Audit
Internal Sharia Audit, Outsourced:
Some Islamic windows do not have a dedicated Sharia
Audit Department and need to outsource this activity,
if permitted by regulatory requirements.
IFIECO can provide a detailed and in-depth Sharia Audit services to such institutions.
External Sharia Audit:
Islamic Banks are usually required by regulators
to have an external Sharia Audit conducted by an
external party, often on an annual basis.
IFIECO can provide an independent,efficient, and holistic Sharia Audit service
service to such institutions.
Key IFIECO Services:
- Inspect and assess Sharia compliance of products, transactions, and operations as per the bank’s and regulator’s policies
- Sharia compliance of contracts, product structures, profit-sharing calculations, Zakat, operational practices
- Assess adherence with Sharia principles within the bank (AAOIFI standards, regulator guidance, internal Sharia rulings)
- Reporting of all incidences of non-compliance or breaches of Sharia
- Post-audit, provide guidance and/or assurance that operations, contracts, & transactions comply with Sharia
Sharia Coordination
Sharia Coordination:
Some institutions may seek to outsource their Sharia Coordination function if permitted by regulation. In this regard, we can provide this service very effectively. This function ensures that the bank’s business activities, products, and operations are aligned with Sharia principles as approved by the Sharia Supervisory Board (SSB).
Key IFIECO Services:
- Perform the role of bridge between the SSB and the financial institution competently and efficiently
- Organize SSB meetings, preparing agendas, and compiling materials for review
- Record and circulate SSB’s fatwas, resolutions and guidelines
- Communicate SSB decisions to management and relevant departments
- Ensure decisions are understood and implemented across departments
- Working with the Sharia Audit Department to track Sharia compliance
- Gather periodic compliance reports for the SSB and for presentation to regulator
- Assist in the preparation of the SSB’s Annual Report as required
Sharia Governance
Sharia Governance:
External audit of Sharia Governance function
The observation of sound a sound Sharia governance function is critical to the health of Islamic financial institutions, as it enables them to operate in a manner consistent with the ethical, legal, and economic principles of Sharia, which in turn assists them in maintaining stakeholder trust, legitimacy, and overall stability. We assist Islamic banks to assess the robustness of their Sharia governance infrastructure from a holistic perspective, which includes an in-depth examination of all the different components and requirements which individually contribute to strong Sharia governance, as per the standards and guidelines laid out by AAOIFI and the IFSB.
Key IFIECO Services:
- Review of SSB structure, configuration and processes
- Product development and documentation-related
- Sharia audit-related: Independence of audit; Quality of audit; Scope; Follow-up, etc
- Sharia compliance-related: Monitoring; Non-compliance register; Rectification; Reporting lines, etc
- Sharia risk-management related
- Overall governance, reporting, transparency
- Staff training, awareness
- HR policies and fairplay
Sharia Training
Sharia Training
A key component of IFIECO’s Islamic Finance Services portfolio focuses on offering training courses on a wide range of subjects and topics in Islamic Finance.
Practitioners and participants find these courses very useful in particular because:
The courses are very specifically designed to be practical and hands-on;
The course material covers real products, transactions, systems, issues, topics, & problems which the participants see and deal with every day and can relate to very well;
All trainings include hands-on and practical examples of product application.
IFIECO provides courses across the full spectrum of Islamic Finance areas, including but not limited to the following:
Islamic Finance Training Courses:
- Sukuk & Syndications (all areas)
- Corporate Products
- Investment Banking Products
- Retail Products
- Trade Finance and SME Products
- Sharia Audit
- Sharia Compliance and Control
- Sharia Governance
- Structuring Innovative Islamic Financial Products
- Structuring Sharia-Based Financial Products
- Sharia Risk Management in Islamic Banks
- Liquidity Management for Islamic Banks
- Sharia-Stress Testing in Islamic Banks
- Understanding Sharia-Compliant Contracts
- Introduction to Islamic Banking & Finance
Economics & Finance
Economics of Development
Economics of Development:
Our work covers many areas within the field of development and development programmes.
A key aspect of our work is to produce top quality knowledge products and add value meaningfully, with the specific aim of guiding policy.
Countries worked in include Bangladesh, Eswatini, Kyrgyzstan, Nepal, Nigeria, and Pakistan.
Areas
- Poverty
- Health
- Education
- Finance & budgeting
- Financial sector development
- Governance
- Social Sector
- Social Protection
- Social inclusion
- Gender development
- Economic integration financial passporting
Key IFIECO Services:
- Conception & implementation of development programs
- Work programs & operational plans
- MTEFs and budgetary plans
- TA programs: design, implementation & follow-up
- Business process reengineering
- Capacity building & institutional strengthening
- Resource mobilization and optimization
- Governance reform
Macroeconomics research
Macroeconomics research and policy
Our work focuses on producing a range of knowledge products, including policy briefs, analytical
reports, technical analysis, technical reports, market outlook reports, sectoral outlook reports, etc.
Key areas worked in:
- Economic growth determinants and drivers
- Modelling economic growth rates
- Oil, gas and renewables markets
- Global energy trends
- Financial sustainability
- Fiscal policy & sustainability
- Global macroeconomic trends & shifting balance
- Monetary policy, the money supply and interest rates
- Trade balance and currency issues
- Stock market reform and development
- US Dollar as reserve currency and future prospects
- Global debt crisis and the financial reset
Capital Markets & Financial Regulation
Areas of Expertise
Stock market and financial markets development & reform
- Strategies to reform & re-energise stock & financial markets
- Increasing retail participation in capital markets sustainably
- Effective policies to improve the true free float & tradeability
- Strengthening market liquidity & incentivising trading
- Robust policies to reduce volatility
Sukuk and syndicated finance
- Working with big-ticket Sukuk and syndicated finance transactions, from start to finish, and post-execution
- Structuring Sukuk
- In-depth expertise of Sharia-legal review of documentation
- Research, classification and development of Sukuk
- Full familiarity & expertise re: the “Asset-backed vs Asset-based/Asset-lite” debate
About Us
IFIECO is a professional services firm (with a specialized, dedicated and motivated team)
We specialize in the following:
- Islamic Finance (emphasis on Sharia-Ethical Finance and Business)
- Economics & Finance
- Capital Markets
The firm’s philosophy rests on three pillars:
Ethical integrity
We approach our work from a holistic perspective, guided by a firm ethical foundation.
Professional excellence
We are committed to upholding the highest levels of professional excellence and competence in our work.
Solving your needs
Our primary objective is to understand your precise needs and to address them in the most satisfactory manner possible.
IFIECO Team:
Dr Salman Khan
MD & Advisory Lead
Salman is a very skilled professional with 26 years of overall experience, of which 20 years have been in head, lead and senior roles in advisory, consulting, research & analysis, strategy, & managerial positions.
Salman’s key areas of expertise are Islamic Finance, Economics, Economics of Development, Finance, & Capital Markets.
Salman has worked in advisory, consultancy & strategy with a specialisation in the fields of economic development, macroeconomics, & finance research for over 15 years. This includes 4 years as Expert Advisor in Finance & Strategy to the Executive President at the Capital Market Authority in Muscat, Oman. He has worked on a wide range of projects (including TA projects) relating to finance, poverty, health, education and capacity building.
In Islamic Finance, Salman has overall 20 years of experience. This includes including 7 years in a VP and Head of Sharia (Dubai) position with a leading UAE bank, where he specialised in Corporate and Investment Banking, Sukuk & syndications, SME, and Sharia consultations. In addition, he spent 8 years separately specialising as a consultant in Islamic Finance. Moreover, Salman has taught Islamic Finance courses very consistently and continuously over the past 20 years, in a number of countries to a wide range of clients, including IFIs e.g. the World Bank and the Arab Monetary Fund, and many Islamic banks.
Overall, Salman has worked as an advisor & consultant on projects with government departments and clients in Bangladesh, Kyrgyzstan, Malaysia, Nepal, Nigeria, Pakistan, Swaziland and also Turkiye, UK, Oman, UAE, and Qatar.
Salman’s professional profile is founded upon excellent academic qualifications, with three specialised degrees in Economics. These feature a Doctorate in Economics from Oxford University, an MPhil in Development Studies (Cambridge) with a strong majority focus on Economics and Econometrics, and a BSc (Hons) in Economics from University College London.
Salman’s interests include reading, history, current affairs, poetry, writing, fitness, and sports. He obtained four Cricket Blues while at Oxford University.
Salman’s language skills include: English, Urdu (native); Arabic Fus-ha (very good, reading, speaking, writing); Spanish & Pashto (intermediate: reading, speaking and writing).
Sheikh Mohsin Khan
Sharia Advisor
Sheikh Mohsin is a young, dynamic, and highly skilled Sharia scholar, with a uniquely multidimensional skill set featuring diverse abilities and specialties.
He completed the full formal 11 year course of Dars-e-Nizami to qualify as a Sharia scholar.
He has a BA in Arabic & Persian from Punjab University, and also a Master’s in Arabic from Sargodha University.
Sheikh Mohsin taught the Islamic Sciences in Darul Uloom, Dewsbury, UK for a number of years. He also acted as interpreter and translator for the British Council, British Courts, and the NHS in the UK.
Sheikh Mohsin teaches the principles of Islamic Finance with an emphasis on the crucial need for Sharia ethics in Islamic Banking and Finance transactions.
Sheikh Mohsin is skilled in the application of Islamic financial products, and has worked in this field for 6 years.
He is fluent in English, Arabic, Pashto, and Urdu. He reads, writes and speaks both Classical Arabic and spoken Arabic (GCC dialect) with full fluency.
He has memorized the Quran with Tajweed and has taught it for many years in his free time.
Sheikh Mohsin is also highly skilled in Computer Science and IT which further demonstrates his versatility, strength in logical thinking and numeracy skills, all of which help to shape his uniquely skilled and diverse profile as an outstanding Sharia scholar and professional.
His interests include reading, teaching, history, sports, and IT.
Mohammed Ali:
Associate Consultant
Ali is has dual specialisation in Economics, and Islamic Banking and Finance.
He obtained his Bachelor’s and an MSc in Economics from the UK.
He holds a CSAA in Islamic Finance.
Ali has worked on a number of development projects relating to finance, work plans, business process reform, capacity building, and others with government departments in Nigeria, Bangladesh, and Pakistan.
He has very good econometric, analytical, report-writing and presentational skills.
Ali has in-depth experience working in Islamic Finance which includes a focus on product development, Sharia-legal documents’ review, Sukuk, syndications, and corporate and SME business solutions.
Yaseen Khan
Yaseen is a dynamic and versatile IT professional with 12 years of experience.
He is responsible for website management and administration, and assisting with research and advertisement.
Yaseen has worked for various clients across 9 different countries. His strengths include dedication, innovation, reliability, and the ability to match technical solutions with business needs.
Partner consultants:
In addition to the above core team, IFIECO has established work associations with 4 experienced and skilled consultants (2 each in Islamic Finance, and Economics & Finance) who participate in various projects on a collaborative basis, as required.
They are based in Pakistan, Malaysia and the UK.
Contact Us
Ist Floor, Lazenda Commercial Center
Jalan Okk Abdullah
P.O. Box 82257
87000 F.T. Labuan, Malaysia
Email: info@ifieco.com
