Name:

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Tahir Jawed

Managing partner

Maples and Calder

Dubai

36

British

Could you provide a brief journey of how you arrived where you are today?
After spending six years at Clifford Chance as a lawyer practising English law in the finance department, I moved to Maples and Calder in the Cayman Islands, where I spent five years practising Cayman Islands law and acting primarily on securitization and finance transactions, including several Sukuk issuances.

In early 2005 I was asked to establish the Dubai office of Maples and Calder.

What does your role involve?
Maples and Calder worldwide has over 180 attorneys and 450 total staff and advises on Cayman Islands, British Virgin Islands (BVI), Jersey and Irish law.

I manage the Dubai office, where we offer Cayman Islands and BVI legal advice and company formation services in these jurisdictions, as well as Jersey, Ireland and Luxembourg.

What is your greatest achievement to date?
In May 2005, Maples and Calder were the first offshore law firm to be authorized to open a law office in the Middle East. I was the first offshore lawyer to arrive in Dubai and to establish an office in the Dubai International Financial Center (DIFC).

Setting up our new office in the DIFC and helping to develop the office, together with my team of lawyers, into the leading offshore law firm in the Middle East, has been my greatest professional achievement to date.

Which of your products/services deliver the best results?
We specialize in advising on the offshore aspects of Islamic finance structures and fund formation. Our clients and the onshore law firms are always impressed with the efficient and economical way the Cayman Islands and BVI can accommodate Islamic finance and funds transactions.

In the past year the Dubai office has been involved as offshore legal counsel with the issue of US$8 billion in Sukuk and the establishment of investment funds looking to raise US$7 billion.

What are the strengths of your business?
We offer the full range of offshore legal services and a choice of the leading offshore jurisdictions. We can provide a structure and jurisdiction which best fits the characteristics of a particular transaction. We can also arrange administration services with our affiliate, Maples Finance.

Maples Finance is licensed in several jurisdictions to provide fund administration services, directors and trustees for orphan companies issuing Sukuk or other securities, accounting services and trustees. This allows Maples and Calder to provide a complete offshore service to our clients.

What are the factors contributing to the success of your company?
We stick to what we do best. We only advise on offshore law and related services. This allows us to work closely with the larger international onshore law firms and financial institutions and complement their services.

Our lawyers are recruited from the London offices of the top city law firms and trained in offshore law to ensure a very high quality of service.

What are the obstacles faced in running your business today?
International regulations and tax laws in relation to structuring transactions are constantly changing and the challenge is to understand the regulations and to work within them to continue to offer our clients efficient and tax effective financing structures.

Where do you see the Islamic finance industry, maybe in the next five years?
I see the Islamic finance industry continuing to grow to meet the demands of an ever increasing Islamic community around the world seeking to integrate its economic activity with its faith.

Name one thing you would like to see change in the world of Islamic finance?
I would like to see Islamic finance moving away from replicating traditional debt structures and towards a more risk-sharing approach.

Maples and Calder has been advising on the world’s most sophisticated offshore financial structures for over 40 years. The firm is a leader in offshore counsel, and has now taken its specialization in hedge funds, private equity and structured finance into the European Union and the Middle East markets.