KUALA LUMPUR, 18th May 2023 – The prestigious IFN Awards Ceremony Kuala Lumpur took place on the 17th May 2023, honoring the outstanding achievements in the field of Islamic finance. Following the IFN Awards Ceremony Dubai held on the 16th March 2023, which celebrated the most impactful Islamic finance transactions in the Middle East, Europe and Africa, the Kuala Lumpur event recognized exceptional contributions from leaders in Southeast Asia.
The awards ceremony gathered approximately 200 leaders from the business world, banking and finance as well as legal communities across Southeast Asia. A total of 24 awards were handed out that night to winners of the IFN Service Providers Poll 2022, IFN Non-Banking Financial Institutions Poll 2022, IFN Best Banks Poll 2022 and IFN Deals of the Year 2022.
CIMB Group’s entities were the big winners of the night taking home nine awards. CIMB Islamic won Malaysia’s Best Overall Islamic Bank, Best Islamic Investment Bank as well as Equity and IPO Deal of the Year, Structured Finance Deal of the Year and Malaysia Deal of the Year while CIMB Niaga Syariah scooped the Indonesian awards for Best Islamic Corporate Bank, Best Islamic Investment Bank, Most Innovative Islamic Bank and Best Overall Islamic Bank. Ahmad Shahriman Mohd Shariff, CEO of CIMB Islamic, received the awards on behalf of CIMB Islamic and Nor Masliza Sulaiman, deputy CEO of CIMB Investment Bank, accepted the Indonesian awards.
Bursa Malaysia was crowned the world’s Best Stock Exchange for Islamic Listings, for the sixth consecutive year. CEO Muhamad Umar Swift accepted the award on behalf of the exchange.
Amanat Lebuhraya Rakyat (ALR) clinched the IFN Deal of the Year awards for Malaysia and Structured Finance. The company’s RM5.5 billion (US$1.21 billion) Tawarruq-based Sukuk showcased innovation in the Islamic finance landscape, ensuring no tax or dividend leakages throughout the Sukuk’s tenor. ALR Group CEO Sazali Saidi, AmInvestment Bank CEO Tracy Chen, Hong Leong Investment Bank Group Managing Director/CEO Lee Jim Leng, Maybank Investment Bank CEO Fad’l Mohamed and UOB Managing Director and Regional Head of Debt Markets Lee Che Kong were among the recipients of these awards.
Khazanah Nasional-backed Farm Fresh’s RM1.1 billion (US$242.54 million) IPO was the Equity and IPO Deal of the Year, with Farm Fresh’s Group CFO Mohd Khairul Mat Hassan accepting the award on behalf of the issuer.
Sarawak Economic Development Corporation’s chairman, Dr Abdul Aziz Husain, and RHB Investment Bank’s managing director of group wholesale banking, Syed Ahmad Taufik Albar, were in attendance to receive the award for Project & Infrastructure Deal of the Year for Sarawak Petchem’s RM6 billion (US$1.32 billion) Sukuk Wakalah Program.
Permodalan Nasional (PNB)’s landmark GBP122 million (US$151.73 million) cross-border Tawarruq won the UK Deal of the Year which supported the Battersea Station Project in London. Nurhalini Azly Minhat, the head of PNB Proprietary, and Yusniza Yusoff, the vice-president of global real estate and fund investment from PNB as well as Raja Amir Shah Raja Azwa, CEO of HSBC Amanah (which arranged the deal), accepted the award.
Expressing gratitude to all participants, Andrew Morgan, the managing director at REDmoney Group, emphasized the significance of the IFN Awards in recognizing the accomplishments of the Islamic finance industry. He stated: “We are thrilled to have successfully concluded the 17th edition of the IFN Awards, a testament to the continued growth and excellence within the Islamic finance industry.”
For more information about the IFN Awards Kuala Lumpur and a complete list of winners, please visit the official IFN Awards website at https://www.islamicfinancenews.com/awards-polls.
About the Awards
IFN Awards were established in 2006 and recognize those who have participated in the industry’s most groundbreaking transactions each year. These awards include IFN Service Providers, IFN Non-Banking Financial Institutions, IFN Best Banks, and IFN Deals of the Year.
About Islamic Finance news (IFN)
IFN is the leading Islamic finance news and solutions provider in the world, housing the largest pool of Islamic finance-related articles and coverage. Providing breaking news, reports and analyses through its multimedia channels, IFN covers the whole spectrum of the Shariah compliant finance industry, leveraging its unrivaled connections, team of journalists and global network of market expert correspondents. IFN has over 65,000 readers worldwide and has organized over 300 events across 35 countries.