Luxembourg’s Role in Building a Sustainable

Islamic Investment Hub in Europe

Pierre OberléALFI

First driver: international expansion of Islamic Funds

UCITS : Undertakings for Collective Investment in Transferable Securities

Are a set of European Union Directives that aim to allow collective investment schemes to operate freely throughout the EU on the basis of a single authorization from one member state (distribution passport)

Fund managers from more than 50 countries use Luxembourg as a hub to sell UCITS funds in 70 countries around the world

UCITS are well adapted for Shariah compliant investments

3Source : Lipper LIM & PwC analysis as at December 31, 2012 (Poster PwC March 2013)

Evolution of cross-border UCITS fund distribution

3 2603 750

4 5294 875

5 170

5 907

6 525

7 366 7 4417 907

8 511

9 436

0

1 000

2 000

3 000

4 000

5 000

6 000

7 000

8 000

9 000

0

10 000

20 000

30 000

40 000

50 000

60 000

70 000

80 000

2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012

Luxembourg Ireland UK France Germany Other Number of truex-border funds

Number of cross-border registrationsNumber of cross-border funds

Second driver: regulated European alternative funds and investor demand for transparency

Redomicilation of funds to onshore European domiciles

AIMFD (Alternative Investment Fund Managers Directive):

New opportunites for Shariah compliant Real Estate and Private Equity funds

New distribution passport: easy to reach institutional investors in the whole European Union

Full support of the authorities and of the financial sector players

2008: Government Taskforce launched

2008: ALFI Islamic Finance Working Group launched

2012: Publication of ALFI Collection of Best Practices for setting-up and administering Shariah-compliant funds in Luxembourg”

Third driver: developments at the institutional level

Thank you

Pierre Oberlé

Business Development Manager

pierre.oberle@alfi.luTel : +352 22 30 26 1

www.alfi.lu