In December, Bahrain became the latest country to offer the Islamic Financial Qualification (IFQ), which was launched two months earlier in London as a joint venture between the British Securities and Investment Institute (SII) and the Ecole Supérieures Des Affaires in Beirut (ESA). With religious feelings on the rise in the Arab world and the recent oil boom, Islamic banking services are being increasingly seen, as a natural alternative to traditional banking, and the IFQ reflects the growing interest in this particular field. Initiated by the Banque Du Liban, the IFQ is already available in London through SII, in Beirut through ESA and in Bahrain through ESA Gulf. “The IFQ is an important development,” said London’s Lord Mayor, Sir Alderman David Brewer. “It is the world’s first ever global benchmark qualification to cover Islamic finance from both a technical production knowledge and a Shari’a aspect.” According to Dr. Ahmad Jachi,
