Islamic Insurer Closes

The first Islamic insurer to be based in the UK has closed its books
after it failed to raise the necessary capital to continue. Salaam
Halal, which was launched last July, has 10,000 policy holders and says
it will honour all current policies until they expire. The management
have blamed the recession for the lack of investment. A recent rights
issue failed to raise the cash required. The insurer sold policies
which were compliant with the Koran, which forbids the practise of
interest, risk and speculation.