Deloitte has appointed its very own Shariah scholar, one Mufti Hassan Kaleem, a pupil of Sheikh Mohammed Taqi Usmani reports Jennifer Hughes in the FT.
Alongside his many other appointments, including working for Al Baraka Bank in Pakistan, Mr Kaleem will work in consultative capacity for Deloitte, which they hope will give them a clear advantage over their rivals. Although all have Islamic teams, Deloitte is the first of the big four ( Deloitte, PwC, KPMG and Ernst & Young) to make such an appointment.
Islamic finance products account for about 2 per cent of the global financial services market, but with Muslims accounting for almost a quarter of the world’s population, bankers expect the market to show double-digit growth for at least the next decade.
However, the staff at the other firms are downplaying the need for a scholar…
“We have good relationships with a number of scholars and a sound understanding of major shariah issues,”
…so says Ken Eglington director specialising in Islamic Financial Services at E&Y, which advises on commercial and financial issues but does not give an opinion on the Shariah authenticity.