PRESS RELEASE
25 th March 2007

Dubai SUKUK Forum to Host World's Most Established Shariah Consultancy

The Middle East Business Forum will be gathering in Dubai on 25 th April 2007 at the Grand Hyatt to focus its members' attention towards the phenomenal growth of the Sukuk industry across international markets. This highly successful Islamic financial instrument has raised over US$100billion in funding for projects to date and issuances for 2007 are forecast to exceed US$20 billion.

Yasaar, the world's oldest and most established Shariah consultancy, will be sponsoring and participating at this acclaimed gathering of blue-chip institutions from the Sukuk issuance industry at large.

Majid Dawood, Managing Director of Yasaar, which is based at the DIFC, has expressed his great interest and sense of industry participation in the development of the Islamic finance market.

"Yasaar has established itself as the definitive Shariah compliance service for those institutions wishing to partake in the Islamic finance industry and we are honoured to be participating in this highly acclaimed SUKUK Forum as key sponsors", he said.

The Forum will be hosting some of the top companies involved in Sukuk issuance and has already attracted widespread interest from entities including Boeing, Shell and the Ministry for Public Housing Indonesia to name but a few.

Furthermore, the Forum is graced with the presence of The Investment Dar, who fresh from their recent triumph as a consortium in acquiring Aston Martin, have sought to support the efforts of the Middle East Business Forum as sponsors.

"The Investment Dar takes great pleasure in supporting this most acclaimed Sukuk industry focused forum. We will be present in full spirits and look forward to meeting and greeting Middle East Business Forum delegates", quotes Amr Abu El Seoud, Executive Vice President of The Investment Dar.

One of the key speakers who will be providing some insight into the innovation in this industry is Hamid Yunis, a partner at Taylor Wessing, one of the leading edge law firms in this sector.

He quotes, "The development of an active and vibrant Sukuk market is of fundamental importance to the continuing development of the Islamic Finance industry. Whilst sovereign, institutional and corporate issues are now common, there is still much more scope for innovation in the use of Sukuk to exploit the global capital markets".

The program put together by the organisers is exactly what the industry requires...a focused event which touches on the practical issues and concerns and indeed brings together a number of the institutions and practioners who will be responsible for this innovation and development"

Speakers include: Ahmed Jachi , First Vice Governor, Central Bank of Lebanon; Brad Bourland , General Manager, SAMBA Financial Group; Ibrahim Mardam-Bey , Director & Executive Vice President, BSEC; Arul Kandasamy , Head of Islamic Finance, Barclays Capital; Shafqat Malik , CFO, Aldar; Hamid Yunis , Partner, Taylor Wessing; Khalid Howladar , Vice President, Structured Finance, Moodys; Stephen De Stadler , Business Development Manager, Middle East, Fitch Ratings; Kristel Richards , Director, Standard & Poors; Waheed Qaiser, Managing Director, Qatar Consulting Company; Ann Ping Saw , Head, Corporate Finance Division, RHB Islamic Bank Bhd; Muneer Khan , Partner, Simmons & Simmons; Kashif Raza , Capital Markets, Dubai Islamic Bank; Omar Daouk , Assistant Vice President, Shuaa Capital, Simon Gray , Director, DFSA; Karl Marietta , CFO, Tabreed; Dr Alberto Brugnoni Director Generale, ASSAIF; Martin Kinsky , Managing Director, DFSA; Iqbal Asaria , Managing Director, Afkar; Amgad Younes , Senior Vice President, Abu Dhabi Islamic Bank; and Majid Dawood , Managing Director, Yasaar.

Sukuk ~ Exploring the Phenomena will be the first international event dedicated to exploring this exciting market and will gather the experts and practitioners that have pioneered and driven this industry so far. Admission is for members only. To register for your free membership please visit the website at www.middleeastbusinessforum.com/sukuk for more details.

PRESS RELEASE
8 th March 2007

SUKUK - The Growing Phenomena Attracts Issuers, Private Banks & Major Ratings Agencies to Annual Forum in Dubai, UAE

The Middle East Business Forum will be convening on April 25 th at the Grand Hyatt, Dubai to bring together a plethora of banks, issuers and ratings agencies, all immersed intensely in the global phenomena that are Sukuk.

The Forum Moderator, Alberto Brugnoni, who runs ASSAIF, an Islamic finance-tailoring consultancy out of Italy will be moderating the event which will be hosting over 200 key institutions in from the SUKUK issuance industry.

"This event looks to be a key bookmark in the evolution of the SUKUK markets, and should result in constructive and innovative debate. It is precisely this type of high level dialogue that is needed to further develop this growing Industry",   remarked Ibrahim Mardam-Bey, Director & Executive Vice President of BEMO Securitisation, a notable speaker and supporter of the Forum.

The Sukuk industry has experienced a phenomenal growth over the last 5 years. From practically being non-existent 5 years ago the industry is worth over $100 billion. There is over $800 billion of reserves that needs to be invested in accordance with Shariah principles. This excess liquidity has fuelled the Sukuk market and there is over $22 billion worth of issuances planned for 2007.

This popular mode of finance has now crossed over beyond the boundaries of Islamic Jurisdictions. In 2004 the German State of Saxony issued a Sukuk in order to attract finance from the Middle East to the region and last year the first U.S. Sukuk was issued for the financing of the East Cameron Gas Field. Furthermore with the Central Bank of Japan launching there own Sukuk this year and the imminent changes in taxation laws in the U.K. to encourage Sukuk issuance, this mode of finance is set to become a global phenomena.

Sukuk-Exploring the Phenomena will be the first international event dedicated to exploring this exciting market and will gather the experts and practitioners that have pioneered and driven this industry so far. Admission is for members only. To register for your free membership please visit the website at www.middleeastbusinessforum.com/sukuk for more details.