SL has potential to become Islamic finance centre in SA

From left: ATLL Head of Compliance A.H.M. Dilshad, ATLL CEO Gehan Rajapakse, CSE CEO Rajeeva Bandaranaike, ATLL Director Dato’ Mohd Fadzli Yusof, CSE Chairman Vajira Kulatilaka, ATLL Director M.H.M. Rafiq, Former CEO of ATLL Reyaz Jeffrey and ATLL Director Fazal Ghaffoor

– Pic by Lasantha Kumara 

By Charumini de Silva 

Amana Takaful Life Ltd. (ATLL) rang the opening bell to commence trading at the Colombo Stock Exchange (CSE) yesterday in order to mark the first trading day for ATLL’s shares since its Initial Public Offering (IPO) in July.

Speaking at the event, Amana Takaful Director Dato Mohd Fadzil Yusof said that with the political will of the country and the support of all stakeholders, Sri Lanka will soon become the centre of Islamic finance in South Asia.

Noting that the company had come a long way since its inception, he commended his Amana Takaful colleagues for realising the vision of the pioneers in bringing Takaful to the mainstream of the financial landscape in Sri Lanka.

“I am hoping that with the listing of ATLL the parent company ATL will add a further dimension in terms of delivering Islamic finance in Sri Lanka in particular and South Asia in general,” he added.

Pointing out that Islamic finance was no longer a niche market he said it was emerging as a main component in the financial landscape globally.

He urged his colleagues, especially the young members of ATLL, to strive further to develop Takaful to greater heights in Sri Lanka.

“This is not only meant for Muslims and certainly we have a quite a lot of non-Muslim policyholders. By saying that on the other hand doesn’t mean that we are forcing the non-Muslims to be Muslims by taking Takaful. This is a very important financial instrument that has universal values,” he explained.

Explaining the concept of Takaful, he stated: “Takaful is derived from the Arabic root-word ‘Kafala’ which means mutual protection and joint guarantee. Operationally, Takaful refers to participants contributing mutually to a common pool for the purpose of mutual indemnity in the case of peril or loss. In a nutshell, it is a concept where we share the fortunes and loss together.”  

Yusof is considered one of the pioneers of Takaful in Malayasia and has been involved in setting up Takaful in Dubai and Nigeria.

While congratulating ATLL for more success to come in the future, CSE Chairman Vajira Kulathilaka pointed out that a retail business like insurance listing offers an avenue for further growth and development.

“A lot of prestige and value is added to your company because of the listing but on the other hand it also gives you a lot of obligations to look after the interest of the investors.  This is what we expect as the CSE, to improve day by day, make it a habit to look after minorities,” he added. 

The ceremony was attended by the Directors of ATLL Dato Mohod Fadzl Yusof, Fazal Ghaffoor, M.H.M. Rafiq, ATLL CEO Gehan Rajapakse, former CEO of ATLL Reyaz Jeffrey and Head of Compliance A.H.M. Dilshad. CSE Chairman Vajira Kulatilaka, CSE CEO Rajeeva Bandaranaike and the senior management of the CSE were also present at the event.