Syria and Djibouti Authorities Join the IFSB - IFSB membership increases to 126

Kuala Lumpur, March 26, 2007 – The Council of the IFSB admitted 16 new members to the IFSB in its 10th meeting on Monday, 26 March 2007, bringing the total of IFSB members to 126. The meeting was chaired by Governor Bank Negara Malaysia, Dr. Zeti Akhtar Aziz, and was attended by all IFSB Council members, including 9 central bank governors, the President of the Islamic Development Bank and six representatives of governors of central banks and monetary authorities.

The two full members that were admitted to the IFSB are the Bank Central De Djibouti and the Central Bank of Syria. Four other regulatory and supervisory authorities have also been admitted as Associate members. They are Bursa Malaysia Berhad, Palestine Monetary Authority, The Insurance Supervisory Authority of Sudan and Securities and Exchange Commission of Pakistan. Labuan Offshore Financial Services Authority has been upgraded to Associate from Observer. Full and Associate membership is only available to regulatory and supervisory authorities and international inter-governmental organizations, among others.

The Council also admitted ten new observer members bringing the total number of observers to 91 organisations operating in 22 jurisdictions. With the inclusion of the new members, the 126 members of the IFSB now comprise 33 regulatory and supervisory authorities, 5 international inter-governmental organisations and 88 market players and professional firms.

The newly admitted members are:

Full Members:
1. Bank Central De Djibouti
2. Central Bank of Syria

Associate Members:
3. Bursa Malaysia Berhad
4. Palestine Monetary Authority
5. Securities and Exchange Commission of Pakistan
6. Insurance Supervisory Authority of Sudan
7. Labuan Offshore Financial Services Authority

Observer Members:
8. Al Salam Bank
9. Mizuho Corporate Bank Ltd
10. AREF Investment Group
11. Lembaga Tabung Haji
12. Bank of Tokyo Mitsubishi UFJ (Malaysia) Berhad
13. Fitch Ratings Singapore Pte Ltd
14. Byblos Bank Africa Ltd
15. Sheikhan Insurance and Reinsurance Co Ltd
16. Tadamon Islamic Bank
17. Badr Al Islami

The full list of 126 IFSB members can be seen on www.ifsb.org. Their roles and responsibilities (by category) can be seen in the IFSB Articles of Agreement downloadable from the site.

The Islamic Financial Services Board (IFSB), which is based in Kuala Lumpur, was officially inaugurated on 3rd November 2002 and started operations on 10th March 2003. It serves as an international-standard setting body of regulatory and supervisory agencies that have vested interest in ensuring the soundness and stability of the Islamic financial services industry, which is defined broadly to include banking, capital market and insurance. In advancing this mission, the IFSB promotes the development of a prudent and transparent Islamic financial services industry through introducing new, or adapting existing international standards consistent with Islamic Shari'ah principles, and recommend them for adoption.

Islamic Financial Services Board
Kuala Lumpur - Malaysia
Tel: 6 03 2698 4248
Fax: 6 03 2698 4280
Email: siham@ifsb.org

This release was published on openPR.