Council, Amanie Advisors To Explore Creation Of Global Syariah Standard On Gold

KUALA LUMPUR, Dec 3 (Bernama) -- The World Gold Council, the market development organisation for the gold industry, is teaming up with the global leading advisory firm for Islamic markets, Amanie Advisors, to explore the creation of a global syariah standard on gold. In a statement Thursday, the World Gold Council said the standard aimed to provide guidance on the use of gold in Islamic financial products and transactions. It said an exposure draft of the standard has been published as part of an open consultation to seek the views and perspectives of a wide range of Islamic finance practitioners, scholars and industry players in order to ensure that the standard provided sufficient and practical guidance. Chief Executive Officer, Aram Shishmanian, said as the Islamic financial services market grew in size and importance, so would be the need for a greater understanding of the application of syariah guidance on the use of gold. "While there is some guidance for gold coins and bars, there is virtually no guidance on gold elsewhere in the financial sector. "Our purpose with this consultation is to ensure that any syariah standard on gold developed by the World Gold Council takes into account a full range of views, inspires confidence and ultimately provides access to gold in the Islamic world," he said. Amanie Advisors Chairman, Dr Mohd Daud Bakar, said the existing Islamic standards for gold were fragmented, hampering product development and market demand and the development of a syariah standard on gold was part of a broader process of harmonisation within the industry. "It will provide clear guidance on gold to individuals and institutions, which will bring time and cost savings to the industry, great choice, and should ultimately enhance liquidity and growth within the Islamic finance industry," he said. World Gold Council said the consultation period closed on Dec 31 and interested parties were invited to respond with views on the exposure draft and consultation questionnaire at www.gold.org/shariah. --BERNAMA