Dubai Islamic Economy Development Centre (DIEDC) organised a roundtable in Malta in collaboration with the Malta Islamic Finance Association (MIFA), aimed at expanding the footprint of Islamic economy in Europe, as well as exchanging knowledge and expertise in the Islamic finance field, and enhancing bilateral relations.

From Malta, Reuben Buttigieg, President of MIFA, Kenneth Farrugia, Chairman of Finance Malta, Christopher Buttigieg, Head of Securities and Markets Supervision at Malta Financial Services Authority, and other senior officials attended the roundtable. The Dubai contingent at the roundtable included Saeed Mubarak Kharbash Al Marri, Deputy CEO of Strategy and Planning at DIEDC, Fahad Al Qassem, CEO of Emirates NBD Capital, Dr Mohamed Damak, Global Head of Islamic Finance at S&P Global, Tahir Mahmood, Head of Business Development at Nasdaq Dubai, and Sohail Zubairi, Projects Advisor at DIEDC.

The participants discussed Malta’s potential to become a key Islamic finance hub in Europe, considering the presence of substantial Muslim communities in Central European countries, such as Italy, France, and Germany. The Maltese government has expressed significant interest in Islamic finance due to its strategic geographical location in the Mediterranean region, between Europe and North Africa, as well as its longstanding ties with the Arab and Muslim worlds.

Commending MIFA’s efforts in introducing Islamic finance in Malta, Saeed Mubarak Kharbash Al Marri noted that the roundtable provided a platform to share Dubai’s success in boosting Islamic economy’s contribution to the Dubai GDP. Through the roundtable, DIEDC also assured Maltese participants of its full support and cooperation as well as the support of other Dubai-based stakeholders, such as Emirates NBD, Nasdaq Dubai, S&P Global, and leading sharia scholars and lawyers.

He said: “Through this visit, we aimed to explore the capital market in Malta and closely study the country’s economic system and climate to gain a thorough understanding of the opportunities that exist. We also seek to promote the digital Islamic economy pillar of the DIEDC 2017-2021 Strategy.”

For his part, Rueben Buttigieg thanked the Centre for sharing its experience and best practices in Islamic economy. He also highlighted the noteworthy endeavours of various entities in Malta that have been ongoing since 2010 to introduce Islamic finance to the island nation.

DIEDC is organising a series of roundtables and meetings across the world, following the recommendations of the Global Islamic Economy Summit that was hosted in Dubai on 30 and 31 October 2018 to expand the horizons of Islamic economy globally and raise awareness about the promising opportunities within its sectors.