IRI at GEFF 2015 in Edinburgh, Scotland
Earlier this month, Daan Elffers of the Islamic Reporting Initiative attended the Global Ethical Finance Forum in Edinburgh, Scotland. Hosted by the Scottish Government, the event was organized by Middle East Global Advisors in cooperation with the UK Islamic Finance Council and partners including Thomson Reuters. The Forum brought together thought leaders and executives from the ethical finance industry to ‘discuss untapped opportunities and spur convergence and collaboration’.
The Forum was officially opened by Dr. Zeti Akhtar Aziz, Governor of Bank Negara Malaysia and HRH Emir Muhammad Sanusi II, Emir of Kano. Named as one of TIME Magazine’s 100 Most Influential People, Emir Sanusi, as the Central Bank Governor of Nigeria, steered his country out of the financial crisis of 2009 by implementing strict regulatory reforms in the banking industry.
The event featured debate between the largest asset owners in Islamic finance and SRI, discussions around the future of green bonds, the development of common standards and principles for industry, mainstreaming responsible finance, ethical banking and ESG integration.
Tirad Al Mahmoud, Chief Executive Officer of Abu Dhabi Islamic Bank (ADIB) and keynote speaker at GEFF 2015, said: “Conventional banking is currently being encouraged by governments, regulators and even the media to get back to basics following the global financial crisis. There is an increasing demand for a banking model that will provide simple solutions, speak a language everyone understands and manage their funds in a fair and transparent way with no hidden charges or unexplained risk. The Islamic banking model speaks to these concepts and is increasingly gaining traction across the world. The convergence of Islamic finance with the West comes together in the form of ethical finance.”
Other distinguished speakers included:
- Ted Roosevelt Malloch, Fellow in Management Practice, Saïd Business School, University of Oxford
- Professor Charles Munn, banker and business historian
- Daud Vicary Abdullah, President and CEO, International Centre for Education in Islamic Finance (INCEIF)
- Rafe Haneef, Chief Executive Officer, HSBC Amanah Malaysia
- Sultan Choudhury, Chief Executive Officer and Director, Al Rayan Bank
- Nasir M. Ahmad, Partner, Ernst & Young LLP
- Abdulla Mohammed Al Awar, CEO, Dubai Islamic Economy Development Centre
- Amanda Young, Head of Responsible Investment, Standard Life Investments
- Andreas Feiner, Founding Partner and Head of Values Based Research, Arabesque Asset Management
- Blake Goud, Lead Research Contributor, Thomson Reuters
- Brandon Davies, Independent Non-executive Director, Lintel Bank Ltd
- Fergus Moffatt, Programme Director and Head of Public Policy, UKSIF
- Mike Tyrrell, Editor, SRI-CONNECT
- Dr. Mohamad Akram Laldin, Executive Director, International Shari’ah Research Academy for Islamic Finance (ISRA)
- Datuk Dr. Mohammed Daud Bakar, Founder and Group Chairman, Amanie Advisors
- Graham Burnside, Advisory Board Member, The Islamic Finance Council UK (IFC)
- Harris Irfan, Managing Director and Head of Investment Banking, EIIB-Rasmala
- Hasan AlJabri, Chief Executive Officer SEDCO Capital Chairman, Sedco Capital Luxembourg
- Hugh Wheelan, Co-founder of the Response Global Media and Managing Editor, Responsible Investor and Launch Editor, ESG Magazine.
- Jaseem Ahmed, Secretary General, Islamic Financial Services Board (IFSB)
- Keith Brown MSP, Cabinet Secretary for Infrastructure, Investment & Cities
- Lord Mohamed Sheikh, Baron Sheikh of Cornhill
- Martina Macpherson, Managing Partner, SI Partners – oekom research, UK
- Omar Selim, Chief Executive Officer, Arabesque Asset Management
- Omar Shaikh, Advisory Board Member, The Islamic Finance Council UK (IFC)
- Stella Cox, Managing Director, DDCAP Group
- Ulrika Hasselgren, Chief Executive Officer and Founding Partner, Ethix SRI Advisors
- Will Martindale, Head of Policy, UN PRI
- Usman Hayat, Director of Islamic Finance and ESG, CFA Institute
- Sachin S Vankalas, Head of Operations and Sustainability, Luxembourg Fund Labelling Agency (Luxflag)
- Zainal Izlan Zainal Abidin, Executive Director, Securities Commission Malaysia (SC)
Blake Goud, Lead Research Contributor at Thomson Reuters and Community Leader of the Islamic Finance Gateway (IFG), launched the latest Responsible Finance Report produced by Thomson Reuters and the Responsible Finance Institute (RFI).
After the event, all guests were invited to an exclusive reception at Edinburgh Castle, hosted by Mr Humza Yousaf, MSP, Minister for Europe and International Development.
The Islamic Reporting Initiative thanks Dr. Sayd Farook, Vice Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of Middle East Global Advisors, for organizing this valuable Global Ethical Finance Forum 2015.
