HIG to host world’s first conference between Islamic finance, halal players

BRITAIN’S Halal Industries Group plc (HIG) will host the world’s first
Halal Capital Markets Conference in London in May next year, an event
that will bring together players in the halal food production and
Islamic finance.

The conference will focus on the development of the halal business in
Muslim and non-Muslim countries, which are now dependent on traditional
funding, Halal Industries Ltd (HIL) finance director Irene Kuan said in
an interview recently.

HIL is a unit of UK-based HIG, which is
controlled by a British businessman. HIG is planning a 40ha halal park
in Wales for farming and aquaculture and a 32ha halal park for
manufacturing in Essex.

“The conference will bring together the
halal sector players and mainstream financial institutions with syariah
fund managers to discuss and explore financing mechanisms and
opportunities within the halal sector on a global basis. They include
private equity, public listings, syariah equity/sukuk funds and
reinsurance, Kuan said.

“We will assist Malaysian companies looking to expand
in Malaysia and globally to raise funds by helping them list their
subsidiary company in London. They can use the money raised from the
listing for cross-border expansion,” she said.

Those attending can also discover how to get a foothold into the UK and the European Union for their products.

“By listing their companies on any of the three exchanges, they can
finance joint manufacturing and processing facilities in Wales and
Essex thereby producing goods locally in the UK and overcoming
regulatory and tariff barriers for their exports into the UK, the EU
and the US,” she said.

Kuan said Malaysian companies which have
met syariah requirements may have a chance to set up shop at the HIG
halal parks, which will be ready by mid-2012.

Further
information on the conference can be obtained from Matrade offices in
Kuala Lumpur and at www.halalcapitalmarkets.com, or call
+44-20-8731-4363.