The annual World Islamic Funds and Financial Markets Conference (WIFFMC) to be held in Bahrain next week expects to build on a decade of success.

Scheduled for May 18 and 19 at the Gulf Hotel, WIFFMC is billed as a high-profile gathering that will chart a new roadmap for the Islamic funds and investments industry, said a report in the Gulf Daily News (GDN), our sister publication.

The line-up of speakers includes powerhouses such as Thomson Reuters head of Islamic capital markets Dr Sayd Farook, Emirates REIT executive deputy chairman Sylvain Vieujot, Sedco Capital managing director Kamran Butt and International Islamic Financial Market chief executive Ijlal Ahmed Alvi.

The two-day event will open with a keynote address by CBB executive director for financial institutions supervision Abdul Rahman Al Baker.

"The Islamic funds industry has grown to become an increasingly substantial segment within the global financial markets and has gained significant interest as a viable and efficient alternative model of financial intermediation," Al Baker said.

He reaffirmed that there are opportunities for more effective and efficient channelling of the significant surplus funds towards the vast productive investment opportunities within and across various key markets for Islamic investment.

Thomson Reuters has chosen WIFFMC as the platform to launch its Global Islamic Asset Management Report which will provide an insight on trends and the future trajectory, as well as country-specific analysis, with regard to the industry. - TradeArabia News Service