Thailand’s financial markets regulator said it has completed rules that will allow institutions including the Islamic Bank of Thailand to sell Shariah-compliant bonds in the country. The Securities and Exchange Commission plans to publish the English-language version of the regulations by the end of the month, including new and amended rules, Corporate Affairs Director Thawatchai Pittayasophon said in an interview today. Thailand’s finance ministry is also preparing two sets of guidelines related to Islamic finance, Thawatchai said. One will ensure products are
taxed fairly and the other will enable intermediaries such as brokers to conduct sukuk, or Islamic bond, transactions, he said. The new policies may help spur the government’s plan to issue Thailand’s first sukuk. Assets held by Islamic financial institutions may climb to US$1.6 trillion in 2012, from about US$1trillion last year, according to an April report by the Kuala Lumpur-based Islamic Financial Services Board. |
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