Bahrain hosts World Islamic Banking Conference

The 20th Anniversary Special Edition of the World Islamic Banking Conference (WIBC 2013) commences at the Gulf Hotel’s Gulf Convention Centre, Bahrain. The three-day event is convened under the patronage of His Royal Highness Prime Minister Prince Khalifa bin Salman Al Khalifa, and backedwith the support of by the Central Bank of Bahrain (CBB). Held under the theme ‘Industry Transformation to Improve Global Competitiveness in Islamic Finance’, tThe event brings together lLeading players, industry thought leadersleading thinkers and key regulators in the international Islamic banking and finance industry to examine the various issues faced by the Islamic finance industry.
The event started off with a pre-conference seminar on December 3 and was hosted by the International Islamic Financial Market (IIFM). The main WIBC 2013 conference, beginning on December 4, will be inaugurated by CBB Governor Rasheed Al Maraj. This will be followed by a special keynote address by Central Bank of Kuwait governor Dr Mohammad Al Hashel. The World Islamic Banking Competitiveness Report, an original research project led by Ernst and Young’s Global Islamic Banking Centre, will be launched on -site. ‘The World Comes to WIBC Initiative’ has been further expanded this year and will feature official delegations representing jurisdictions for of Islamic finance including Bahrain, Luxembourg, the UK, Canada and Azerbaijan.
UK Country Interface, will be inaugurated by British Ambassador Iain Lindsay. WIBC 2013 will  feature an exclusive Canada Country Interface for the first time which will be inaugurated by Canada’s Ambassador to Saudi Arabia Thomas MacDonald. The special edition of WIBC will also feature a special awards ceremony that will recognize excellence, innovation and pioneering initiatives in the global Islamic banking and finance industry over the past 20 years of WIBC.

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