JOHOR BARU, Oct 1 — Entrepreneurs are urged to take advantage of the growing halal industry by empowering their businesses through various Islamic finance solutions, thus maximising business’ potentials.
Bank Negara Malaysia (BNM) Deputy Governor Datuk Shaik Abdul Rasheed Abdul Ghaffour said the finance industry has also come together in demonstrating their commitment to businesses, particularly halal businesses and enhancing protection for halal businesses to venture into emerging markets.
“A dedicated RM20 billion yearly fund has been allocated by Islamic banks under the Association of Islamic Banking and Financial Institutions Malaysia (AIBIM) for small and medium enterprises (SMEs), including halal businesses,” he said in his speech at the Islamic Finance Rendezvous Series in Johor, jointly organised by BNM, AIBIM and Malaysian Takaful Association, here today.
Abdul Rasheed also said there was a growing awareness of the concept of halalan-toyyiban which calls for Shariah-compliant to be assessed throughout the entire supply chain of the products, including distribution, marketing, and financing.
“Currently, only 54.1 per cent of halal businesses are bank-financed, and less than a quarter of the financing (21.9 per cent) is in the form of Islamic solutions.
“Islamic finance offers a variety of solutions through the use of wide-range Islamic finance concepts such as sales-based, leasing, profit sharing or partnership and many more that enable better fit for businesses’ need,” he said.
Mentri Besar Johor Datuk Dr Sahruddin Jamal officiated the session.
More than 300 participants attended the session comprising SMEs, multinational companies, as well as bankers and related government agencies. — Bernama
