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Today's Headlines Islam

  • Sharia Tourism: Indonesia's Kagum Group to Invest in Sharia Hotels

    The Kagum Group, a hospitality management company in Indonesia, is eager to expand into the sharia tourism sector by establishing a chain of sharia hotels across Indonesia. Sharia hotels are hotels that follow Islamic principles such as offering separated indoor (protected from public view) swimming pools for men and women or serving halal food and beverages (excluding pork and alcoholic drinks). Through sharia-compliant hotels, the group targets to welcome more tourists from the Middle East.

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  • Using Islamic Bonds to Boost Infrastructure Development in Indonesia

    In 2016 investors will be able to purchase about IDR 13.7 trillion (approx. USD $1.4 billion) worth of Islamic bonds (known as sukuk) to be issued by the Indonesian government. This amount is nearly double the amount of planned sharia-compliant sovereign debt paper this year (IDR 7.14 trillion). Indonesia will use proceeds from next year's bond sales to boost the nation’s infrastructure development (such as roads, ports, power plants, rail lines, bridges and Islamic universities).

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  • Ramadan & Infrastructure in Indonesia: Idul Fitri Exodus Estimated at 20 Million

    It is estimated that about 20 million Indonesians will travel back to their hometowns during the Idul Fitri (also known as Lebaran) celebrations that mark the end of the Ramadan (the Islamic holy fasting month) next month. This homeward bound traveling is locally known as mudik. The annual mudik tradition involves millions of Indonesians taking time off from work, leaving their urban residences and travel back to their places of birth in the rural areas for a few days. During these days cities become empty.

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  • Islamic Banking in Indonesia: ‘I Love Sharia Finance Program’

    Indonesian President Joko Widodo stated during the launch of the “I Love Sharia Finance Program” that Indonesia should become the global center for Islamic finance (also known as sharia banking). The program, initiated by the country’s Financial Services Authority (OJK), was launched in Jakarta on Sunday (14/06). Islamic finance is a form of banking or banking activity that is consistent with the principles of sharia (Islamic law). In recent years, the global market for sharia-compliant financial instruments has risen robustly.

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  • Rohingya Refugees Rescued at Seas near Indonesia’s Aceh Province

    Over the past two days more than 900 migrants (believed to be Rohingya Muslims from Myanmar and Bangladesh) have been rescued from overcrowded wooden boats near the coastal area of Indonesia’s Aceh province at the northern tip of Sumatra. After being spotted by local fishermen, these boats were towed to Acehnese shore. Meanwhile, in Malaysia more than 1,000 migrants from Myanmar and Bangladesh were found in shallow waters near Langkawi after being abandoned by human traffickers.

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  • Islamic Finance in Indonesia: Sale of Sukuk Retail Bonds

    Indonesia eyes to raise IDR 20 trillion (USD $1.6 billion) from the sale of sukuk, Islamic bonds, to Indonesian citizens between 23 February and 6 March 2015. These three-year Sharia-compliant retail bonds (SR-007 retail sukuk) offer an 8.25 percent coupon rate, the highest premium over existing securities in two years. The minimum order for these bonds starts at IDR 5 million and the maximum is IDR 5 billion. The Indonesian Finance Ministry said that proceeds of the debt sales will be used to finance the country’s state-budget deficit.

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  • What are the Official National Public Holidays in Indonesia in 2015?

    Indonesia is the world's largest archipelago. Due to the country's sheer size (implying diversity) it contains a variety of different religions and traditional beliefs. The Constitution of Indonesia, a secular democratic country containing a Muslim-majority population, guarantees all Indonesian citizens the freedom of worship, each according to his or her own religion or belief. This also means that Indonesia contains many, mostly religion-inspired, public holidays on which financial markets are closed.

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  • Terror Threat Indonesia: Islamic State in Indonesia?

    In the past few days, American and Australian authorities announced to detect a high degree of potential terrorist attacks in Indonesia, reportedly related to the Islamic State in Iraq and Syria (ISIS) movement. ISIS is an outlawed movement in Indonesia but does have sympathizers in the world’s largest archipelago containing the world’s largest Muslim population (about 210 million Muslims). Last Saturday (03/01), the US embassy issued a security warning for US-associated hotels and banks in the city of Surabaya (East Java).

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  • OJK Sets New Rules in Indonesia’s Islamic Financial Services Industry

    In a bid to enhance monitoring on Indonesia’s financial services sector, to deepen financial markets, and to widen people’s access to financial services, the Financial Services Authority (OJK) has introduced 20 new rules ranging from corporate governance to microfinance. The institution also revised Islamic banking rules involving asset quality and capital adequacy in an effort to increase the role of Islamic banking (sharia banking) in Indonesia’s financial system. Authorities target that Islamic banks hold more than 15 percent of the market by 2023.

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  • Islamic Finance in Indonesia: Sharia Banking is Large Untapped Potential

    Having the world’s largest Muslim population and experiencing sustained economic growth at a pace of +5 percent implies that Indonesia harbours great potential for Islamic finance (sharia banking). However, Indonesia is yet to tap the full potential of the Islamic financial services market. As an illustration, with a figure of USD $24 billion, Indonesia’s Islamic banks only held 4.9 percent of the country’s total banking assets in 2013. This is small compared to Malaysia (where Islamic banking holds a 20 percent market share).

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Latest Columns Islam

  • Islamic Banking in Indonesia Explained: New Rules & Foreign Ownership

    Indonesian financial authorities are considering to ease foreign ownership limits for local Islamic banks and to promote new sharia-compliant financial tools in an effort to make the Islamic finance industry more attractive to foreign investors and the Indonesian population. Despite having the world’s largest Muslim population and being a dynamic emerging economy, Indonesia plays only a very minor role in the global Islamic banking industry. Meanwhile, domestically, Islamic banking still seriously lags behind conventional banking.

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  • Islamic Banking in Indonesia: Boosting Syariah Finance

    Syariah banking or Islamic finance is a large untapped potential in Indonesia, a country where about 13 percent of the total global Muslim population live. With nearly 90 percent of the 250 million people in Indonesia adhering to Islam, the market share of syariah (sharia) finance is remarkably low. At USD $24 billion, Islamic banks in Indonesia only held 4.9 percent of the country’s total banking assets in 2013, hence making Indonesia’s Financial Services Authority (OJK) decide to launch a five-year roadmap in a move to boost syariah banking.

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  • History of Indonesia: Politics and the Economy under Sukarno

    By the mid-1960s, politics and the economy of Indonesia had turned into disaster. After Independence in 1945 (and the cessation of hostilities with the Dutch in 1949), the young nation was plagued by hostile internal politics in which several political forces - consisting of the army, nationalists, Muslims, and communists - opposed each other. For over a decade, Sukarno, Indonesia’s first president, had reasonable success in keeping these forces in check by the force of his own personality. However, by the mid-1960s his failure became evident.

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  • Attracting Investments: Rebranding the Image of Indonesia's Aceh Province

    The Regional Investment Coordinating Board said that Aceh (Sumatra), known for its strong Islamic identity, expects to receive IDR 5 trillion (USD $438.6 million) in foreign and domestic investment in 2014. In the first quarter of 2014, Indonesia's western-most province already saw IDR 2 trillion (USD $175.4 million) worth of investments. Aceh, a resource-rich province (in particular oil and natural gas), is one of the more mysterious Indonesian provinces and has had to deal with considerable negative publicity throughout its modern history.

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