International Islamic Banking and Finance Law
Conference 2016
Co-Organisers
Johan is the managing partner of J. Lee & Associates. He holds an LLB (Hons) degree from International Islamic University Malaysia, a Master of Comparative Laws degree and post-graduate Diploma in Shariah and Legal Practice from the same university. He also holds an MA in Economics for Competition Law from King’s Collage London. He is currently a qualified member of the Chartered Institute of Arbitrators, UK as well as a mediator of the Malaysian Bar. He is an advocate and solicitor of the High Court of Malaya. Proficient in English, Malay language, Mandarin, he is also the first Chinese origin Shariah practitioner ever admitted by the Shariah (Islamic law) court.
His current practice includes corporate and commercial law, competition law compliance and Islamic corporate finance related matters. He is instrumental in developing Islamic banking, Takaful and Islamic corporate finance documents and exercise for several financial institutions as well as corporate and governmental entities in Malaysia, and has spoken extensively in seminars, workshops and conferences on various issues and topics concerning Islamic corporate finance and Takaful both locally and internationally. He is an accredited trainer of IBFIM. He has been a part-time lecturer in International Islamic University Malaysia since 1999 for both undergraduate and postgraduate law programmes. He is also part time lecturer to few other local universities and institutions.
He is now a member of the Shariah Advisory Council (SAC) of the Association of Islamic Banking Institutions Malaysia (AIBIM). Also, he is a consultant to few law firms and practices in Malaysia, Brunei, Singapore, Indonesia and the UK. He has drafted and designed numerous Islamic banking legal documents and products in Malaysia and overseas. He is the master documents drafting and product developer for many Islamic banks in and outside Malaysia. He has authored several textbooks locally and internationally on Islamic banking and finance.
Ms Azleena Idris is currently Deputy Director in charge of Islamic Finance Internationalisation Strategy and Development at Central Bank of Malaysia. She has been with the regulatory body since 2005 and have been instrumental in a number of key national and international initiatives that maintained Malaysia’s position in Islamic finance including the taxation policies for Malaysia as an International Islamic Financial Centre (MIFC), Islamic finance development aspects of the current Financial Sector Master Plan, the policy thrusts of the Islamic Financial Services Act 2013 and Shariah-related provisions in the Central Bank of Malaysia Act 2009 and the Islamic finance dimension of liberalising the Malaysian legal profession. She was also briefly seconded to International Islamic Liquidity Management Corporation to spearhead finalisation and operationalisation of its business model. A federal scholar, she read law at Manchester Law School, United Kingdom and has a Certificate of Legal Practice (Hons) from the Malaysian Legal Profession Qualifying Board. She had just completed the Global Executive MBA joint degree from London School of Economics and Political Science, New York University Stern Business School and HEC Business School Paris.
Dato’ Rohana Yusuf graduated with LLB (Hons.) from University of Malaya in 1980. She obtained Diploma Syariah Law & Practice and Masters in Comparative Laws in 1993. She commenced her legal career at the Attorney General’s Chambers serving in various capacities as legal advisers to a number of Departments and Ministries.
She opted for earlier retirement and later became legal adviser to a commercial bank and was also in legal practice. Before her elevation to the Bench, she served as Deputy Director in Islamic Banking Department at Bank Negara Malaysia. On elevation, she was the High Court Judge in Kuala Lumpur and was the first to serve at Muamalat Bench. Now at the Court of Appeal she is also chairing the Court of Appeal Panel hearing cases including Muamalat cases.
Adrian is recognised as a leading lawyer in Malaysia by many leading publications, including Asialaw Leading Lawyers, IFLR 1000, Who's Who Legal (for his expertise in Capital Markets - Structured Finance, Debt and Equity and Islamic Finance), as well as Chambers and Partners which ranked him in the top band for Banking & Finance in Malaysia.
He is primarily involved in banking and finance, debt and equity capital markets and mergers and acquisitions.
His banking and finance and capital markets experience includes advising on the issue of corporate bonds; the issue of Tier 1 and Tier 2 securities for various Malaysian banks; several significant Regulation S/Rule 144A initial public offerings in Malaysia and the issue of debt securities for the financing of several significant infrastructure and energy projects in Malaysia.
His mergers and acquisitions experience includes advising on the take-over, sale of strategic stake of and joint venture & collaboration between companies across different industries as such manufacturing, oil & gas, telecommunication and financial services.
Rodney is primarily involved in capital market financing, banking, securitisation, corporate finance and corporate advisory work relating to debt and financing.
He has been involved in a number of notable transactions, including advising on the issuance of private debt securities and Sukuk by various Malaysian corporations. He has also acted as Malaysian legal counsel in relation to initial public offerings and listings on Bursa Malaysia, and advised on the financing of several significant infrastructure and energy projects in Malaysia.
Wico, with two decades of experience in corporate finance, has been regularly cited in legal publications as a leading or highly recommended practitioner. In Chambers Global (2013), he “wins praise from a variety of market sources…on both debt and equity issues” and “has developed particular experience of infrastructure business trusts, and is also recognised for his work on several substantial sukuk transactions in Singapore.”
More than once, he achieved the record of working on both the largest IPO and the largest bond offering in Singapore in the same year. Since the inception of business trusts in Singapore, Wico has built up leading experience in infrastructure business trusts (BT), including working on a multi-billion IPO of the largest ever infrastructure BT.
Beyond award-winning and landmark transactions in both equity and debt capital markets, his experience extends to securitisation and structured finance. One of his deals won both the Singapore Deal of the Year Award and the Singapore Structured Finance and Securitisation Deal of the Year from a legal publication.
In the emerging field of Islamic banking and finance, he is cited by Islamic Finance News in 2012 as a leading lawyer in Singapore. In Chambers Asia-Pacific (2014), he is noted as “a notable name” in Islamic finance and “observers affirm that he is ‘a very good resource for clients to rely on.’” His track record of pioneering the largest sukuk transactions in Singapore includes the first sukuk issue, the first sukuk programme, the first statutory board issuer of sukuk and the first sukuk to cross the S$1 billion value.
Wico’s other notable transactions include working on the first ever IPO of a securities exchange worldwide, the record-breaking acquisition by a Singapore corporate exceeding US$8 billion, the first publicly-rated synthetic securitisation by a Singapore bank and the first rated and listed asset securitisation programme in Singapore.
He graduated from law school at the National University of Singapore and holds a Diploma in Banking and Finance from the Institute of Banking and Finance in Singapore. He was called to the Singapore Bar in 1992 and was admitted as a non-practising solicitor of England and Wales and as an attorney and Counsellor-at-Law in the State of New York.
Rafe became the Chief Executive Officer of CIMB Islamic Bank Berhad on 4 January 2016 and is in charge of the CIMB Group's Islamic banking and finance franchise. CIMB Islamic operates as a parallel franchise to the Group’s conventional operations and covers Islamic wholesale banking, Islamic consumer banking, Islamic commercial banking and Islamic asset management and investment.
Rafe has 20 years of experience covering a range of businesses and functional roles gained from three global banks, an international asset management company and a legal firm, at various financial centres including London, Dubai and Kuala Lumpur.
He read Law at the International Islamic University Malaysia and also holds an LL.M degree from the Harvard Law School. He was admitted to the Malaysian Bar in 1995 and qualified for the New York State Bar in 1997.
Rafe first joined HSBC Investment Bank plc, London in 1999 and thereafter HSBC Financial Services Middle East, Dubai where he set up the global sukuk business in 2001. Subsequently, he became the Global Head of Islamic Finance business at ABN AMRO Dubai in 2004 covering both consumer and corporate businesses. In 2006, he moved back to Malaysia with Citigroup Asia as the Regional Head for Islamic banking, Asia Pacific. He later joined HSBC Amanah in 2010 as the CEO, Malaysia and Managing Director of Global Markets, ASP.
Justice Datuk Dr. Haji Hamid Sultan bin Abu Backer, a Judge of Court of Appeal Malaysia, is a barrister and a fellow of the Chartered Institute of Arbitrators. He is a graduate in economics and also an honours and masters degree holder from University of London in Insurance, Shipping and Syariah Law. He also holds post graduate diplomas in Islamic Banking and Finance and also in Syariah Law and Practice from International Islamic University Malaysia. He was a member of the Malaysian Bar Council for more than 6 years and has served as Chairman in various committees. He has been invited as a visiting Scholar of University of Sheffield in United Kingdom and also participates in various other activities of Universities such as examiner of PhD thesis, external examiner, Guest Speaker, etc. He has written on various subjects, inclusive of Civil Procedure, Criminal Procedure, Evidence, Conveyancing, Islamic Banking and many more areas, on commercial law. His books grace the libraries of law firms and the chamber of judges.
Ms. Rammit Kaur is currently the Head of the Legal Services Department in the Kuala Lumpur Regional Centre for Arbitration (KLRCA). She also performs as the Registrar of the Institution responsible for case
management and administration of Arbitrations, Adjudications and other Alternate Dispute Resolution mechanism under the auspices of KLRCA. Apart from managing a reputable team of Local and International
Case Counsel, she also spear heads various development projects undertaken by KLRCA such as mediation in medico-legal disputes, setting up a society for Maritime Law and its promotion both in Malaysia and
in the International Arena.
Rammit is a qualified lawyer in Malaysia, Fellow of the Chartered Institute of Arbitrators and also a Chartered Secretary and Administrator. She has over 15 years of experience in varied roles including
a practising solicitor and has served as an in-house counsel for leading infrastructure based government linked companies as well as an in-house counsel for Oil and Gas multinational companies. Her areas
of expertise include Arbitration, Construction and Corporate Law. Owing to the varied roles undertaken by her spanning across her career, she also has extensive industry experience in various industries
including Infrastructure, construction, oil and gas, legal risk management and contract management.
Rammit is also regularly called upon to present at legal, arbitration and sector-focused conferences and seminars. She is also a member of the organising committee of the Malaysian Branch of the Chartered
Institute of Arbitrators.
Ustaz Mohd Nazri Chik was first appointed as secretary of the Shariah Supervisory Council in 2011, and prior to that, since 2009, he was a member of the council. He holds a Bachelor of Shariah and Master of Shariah from the University of Malaya and started his career as a tutor in the university until he joined Bank Islam in June 2004. He then worked at Noor Investment Group, Dubai UAE as its Shariah Audit Manager beginning 2009. During this time, Ustaz Mohd Nazri was appointed as a member of the Shariah Supervisory Council until he rejoined the Bank in January 2011. He is also the Deputy Chairman, Shariah Supervisory Council of Amana Bank Limited, Sri Lanka; Accredited Panel of the Finance Accreditation Agency; Member of Professional Practices Bureau, Association of Shariah Advisors, Accredited Trainer for Islamic Banking and Finance Institute of Malaysia and External Shariah Advisor of Ghazanfar Bank, Afghanistan.
In May 2014, he was selected as the recipient of the “Promising Young Banker Award 2014” by The Asian Banker magazine.
Raja Teh, having a career of more than 20 years in banking and finance focusing on areas of Islamic finance and investment banking, currently holds the positions of Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer of Hong Leong Islamic Bank.
Prior to the above positions, Raja Teh was:
Jal Othman, 48 years old, heads the Islamic Finance practice in Shook Lin & Bok, one of the oldest and largest law firm in Malaysia. Jal was instrumental in setting up the Islamic Finance practice and continues to chart the course of this practice area within the Firm. His task include setting the policy direction for the incremental development of this area of practice within the Firm and developing a structured research and development unit to promote an effective continuing legal education scheme within the Firm.
Jal heads a team of approximately 20 lawyers advising on Islamic finance deals. Leveraging on 16 years of experience as a banking and finance lawyer, Jal guides and leads his team in the retail, mezzanine and tier one financing deals, both for onshore and cross border clients. His portfolio of work includes advising on a wide range of sukuk issuances for financing power plants in Malaysia and China, vessel construction, project fnancing for the automotive industry, the textile and garment industry, the downstream and upstream palm oil industry, advising on Islamic structured products and Islamic syndicated financing.
Jal is also actively involved in the drive for innovation in the industry and in this respect Jal leads the team advising on various product developments for Islamic banks, both in Malaysia and abroad.
Jal started as a conventional banking and finance lawyer and kindled his passion for Islamic Finance at the same time that Malaysia embraced this form of financing. Given the inherent interplay between Shariah and Common Law in Malaysia, Jal’s experience in conventional financing has held him in good stead in the area of Islamic Finance.
In addition to Islamic Finance, Jal’s other major areas of practice are corporate commercial law and real estate. His experience in advising on some major cross border mergers and acquisition and real estate acquisitions have benefited him in his role as an Islamic Finance lawyer. Jal is the deputy head of the conventional banking and finance department.
Concurrent with managing his portfolio in the Firm, Jal is also very much involved in the Islamic finance industry. Jal holds positions in INCEIF University (an institution established under the auspices of the Malaysian Central Bank). Jal has also been commissioned by the Malaysian Securities Commission and the Rating Agency of Malaysia in relation to product development and regulatory requirements. Jal is also involved in law reform with his involvement in the Malaysian Central Bank committee for Islamic Finance Law Reform.
Jal also sits on the technical committees of the Malaysia Accounting Standards Board (“MASB”) and the Malaysia Institute of Accountants (“MIA”). Additionally, he is also a moderator with the Finance Accreditation Agency (“FAA”) and an arbitrator for Islamic Finance with the Kuala Lumpur Regional Centre for Arbitration (“KLRCA”). Jal is also a chapter reviewer and contributor for the International Shariah Research Academy (“ISRA”).
Consistent with the Firm’s policy of driving a global presence, Jal has participated on various international platforms as a speaker, moderator, panelist and commentator. These include conferences, workshops and forums in Australia, China, Hong Kong, Indonesia, Egypt and Singapore.
After graduating from Queen Mary & Westfield College of the University of London and after completing the Malaysian Bar examinations, Jal commenced his pupilage in Shook Lin & Bok and continued his employment with the Firm, culminating in his admission as a partner in 2001. He continued his progression within the Firm with his elevation as a senior partner of the Firm in 2004.
Rushdi Siddiqui is a Co-Founder and CEO of Zilzar.com, the world’s first B2B and B2C information, content, community and transaction platform for the $2.5 Trillion Muslim Lifestyle Market, which was launched in 2014. Zilzar.com aims to organize the world’s information on the Muslim Lifestyle Market and make it universally accessible to build communities and make it useful for education, awareness and transactions. It will bring together millions of globally dispersed halal SMEs that are resource challenged but want to grow by accessing new markets and customers, and counter-part buyers that want to deal only with credible and (halal) certified sellers. He is on the Board of Advisors of Falah Capital, Advisory Board of Crescentrating, Board Member of DinarStandard, and co-founder of www.shekra.com, an Islamic crowd funding company, He is featured in the book, Global Leaders in Islamic Finance by John Wiley, 2013. He was the Global Head of Islamic Finance & OIC Countries for Thomson Reuters, Halal industry and OIC, and Global Director for Dow Jones Islamic Market Index. He has delivered notable market “firsts," led his global team to establish the world’s first Islamic equity index, first Sukuk index, first Islamic sustainability index, first halal food index (SAMI), and first Islamic interbank benchmark rate (IIBR). He sits on the International Islamic Advisory Committee for Malaysia’s Securities Commission, 2011, and was on DIFC Islamic Finance Advisory Committee (IFAC) from 2007 to 2011. He has a column in Malaysia’s Malaysian Reserve, Malaysia Insider and Dubai’s Khaleej Times, CPI magazine.
Yusry Yusoff is the Chief Executive Officer / Executive Director of Association of Islamic Banking Institutions Malaysia (AIBIM). He has 20 years of experience in various aspects of financial industry including regulatory supervision and licensing, fund management industry development, investor education, international standard setting and promotion of financial centre.
Prior to joining AIBIM, he had served the Securities Commission Malaysia (SC), Islamic Financial Services Board (IFSB) and Bank Negara Malaysia (BNM). His experience includes, amongst others, developing and leading the standards implementation programmes for IFSB member countries, promoting the Islamic fund management industry under the Malaysia International Islamic Financial Centre (MIFC) initiative and developing training programmes for senior judges in collaboration with the Judicial Appointments Commission. He was also involved with the Law Harmonisation Committee (LHC) of Bank Negara Malaysia chaired by YABhg Tun Abdul Hamid Mohamad where his team assisted the committee to incorporate Order 42A in the Rules of Courts 2012. He and his team also completed a project to streamline the pronouncements of Shariah Advisory Council of BNM and SC as recommended by the Financial Sector Blueprint 2011-2020.
He holds LLB (Hons) degree from Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia and a Master of Commercial Law from University of Melbourne. He was called to the Malaysian Bar in 1995.
Megat Hizaini Hassan joined Lee Hishammuddin Allen & Gledhill in January 2011 as a partner in the Financial Services practice group, where he heads Islamic Finance. An alumnus of the International Islamic University of Malaysia (IIUM), he also holds Master of Laws (LLM) degrees from the University of Cambridge, UK, and Harvard Law School, US. He was a Cambridge Commonwealth Trust scholar at Cambridge, International Islamic University scholar at Harvard and a Royal Dutch/Shell scholar at IIUM. He was called to the Malaysian Bar in 1991.
Megat is well versed in matters relating to Islamic banking and finance, as well as corporate legal and regulatory developments. He has advised local and international clients on issues pertaining to the legal and regulatory framework, as well as matters relating to applicable Shariah standards, for Islamic financial or investment transactions in Malaysia and abroad.
Prior to joining Lee Hishammuddin Allen & Gledhill, Megat was with another major law firm in Malaysia, where he headed the firm’s Islamic banking and finance practice and also served as director of a Shariah compliance advisory firm registered with the Securities Commission Malaysia. He was also a lecturer at the Kulliyyah of Laws, International Islamic University, Malaysia.
Dr Aida Othman is a Partner at Zaid Ibrahim & Co (a member of ZICOlaw). She joined Zaid Ibrahim & Co in 2007 as Senior Associate and was made partner in 2009.
She received her Bachelor of Laws (First Class Honours) and Bachelor of Islamic Law (Syariah) (First Class Honours) from International Islamic University, Malaysia; Masters of Law from Cambridge University, United Kingdom; and Doctor of Philosophy in Comparative Law & Middle Eastern Studies from Harvard University, United States of America
Aida specializes in Islamic banking and finance, Islamic capital market instruments and takaful products and operations. She also advises on Shariah compliance and governance, including on the legal and regulatory framework for Islamic finance.
In particular, she has advised on: