Islamic banking products continue to rise in market appeal, with international and regional banks working to meet demand. The latest Sharia-compliant financial tool to be made available to Lebanese and Middle Eastern investors is the HSBC Amanah Global Equity Index Fund. Launched last month as the first index tracker fund to invest in the 100 largest Sharia-compliant companies by market capitalization, the fund is a product of HSBC Amanah, the Islamic financial services division of leading global banking group HSBC.
Buyers can participate with a minimum of $5,000 in the fund, which is designed to provide them with long-term appreciation of capital through investment in a portfolio of worldwide listed equities that meet Islamic standards. These standards mandate, among other requirements, that companies under investment not be involved in activities such as gaming and alcohol, which are forbidden under the tenets of Muslim faith.
Demand for Sharia-compliant banking products among customers of HSBC Lebanon has been increasing consistently and amounts to “a lot,” confirmed a spokesperson for the bank, who declined, however, to give figures on either the number of private banking clients at the bank’s Lebanon branches or the exact demand for Sharia-compliant products among its customers.
Meanwhile in the local market, Beirut-based Al-Baraka Bank announced that it is opening four new branches. The bank, which operates under Islamic principles, had seen several years of minimal activities in Lebanon until it undertook a restructuring beginning in 2003.
