Could you provide a brief journey of how you arrived where you are today?
I am a mathematics graduate and completed my ACA in 1996, after which I worked in London’s banking industry for a decade. Whilst at UBS, I moved into Islamic banking, helping to establish the business there. I relocated to Bahrain in 2005 with Calyon to help establish the new Islamic banking team. Finally I moved to J.P. Morgan in 2007, again to set up the Islamic banking business.
What does your role involve?
Initially it involved identifying key areas of the Islamic banking market where we could meet the requirements of our clients, and then working with all business areas of J.P. Morgan on a global basis to develop and then deliver these solutions to our clients.
Today we have a wide range of products and solutions for our clients, and we serve them across our major business areas of investment banking, treasury and security services, asset management and private banking.
What is your greatest achievement to date?
It is very challenging, within a conventional bank, to develop a sustainable business serving our clients in the Islamic banking industry. It requires a very deep understanding of the industry and of course our clients’ requirements, followed by a period of internal education, finally leading to product development and delivery to our clients.
This process is extremely challenging as any single product requires the involvement of a large number of different teams, all working together to achieve something that has not been done before, and which is very different compared to normal conventional banking products.
To see that process through to delivery is very satisfying and pleasing. I have been fortunate enough to have experienced that success at three global investment banks now.
Which of your products/services deliver the best results?
J.P. Morgan delivers a wide variety of Shariah compliant solutions across many business lines. In recent times we have seen increased client focus on liquidity and trade finance solutions and have worked to deliver the best solutions to our clients.
What are the strengths of your business?
Without doubt, the caliber of staff we have globally, the depth of our client relationships and the breadth of products and services that we are able to provide to our clients.
What are the factors contributing to the success of your company?
Where a business is developed that is different from anything you have done before, requiring the support and teamwork of dozens of people from different business lines even for a single solution, the most important driver for success is a clear focus on the end product, which in this case is being able to deliver effective solutions to our clients.
It is that commitment, demonstrated by senior management through to product and relationship teams, that provides the platform for success..
What are the obstacles faced in running your business today?
The market remains quite fragmented, resulting in an increase in the number of bespoke solutions required for clients, rather than a recognized market standard to be followed. Additionally, it is difficult to operate effectively in many relevant jurisdictions outside of English law.
Where do you see the Islamic finance industry in, say, the next five years or so?
I see continued rapid growth in terms of products and services that are offered to the public. Takaful will increase, and I expect it to be used in the area of investment insurance as well as current applications.
The increasing adoption of Islamic banking in countries such as Indonesia, Kazakhstan and hopefully Egypt and Turkey will continue to provide growth momentum. I would like to see Islamic interbank and capital markets develop and diverge from the debt-based conventional markets; this has not happened so far.
Name one thing you would like to see change in the world of Islamic finance.
Greater coordination from all stakeholders — the industry should no longer continue to develop ad hoc with several competing elements in all areas. There should be an industry-wide platform that enables the exchange of ideas and vision, and implementation of developmental strategies.
If this occurs effectively, we should see an opportunity to move away from the dominant interest-based Islamic banking activity to a real enterprise based system.