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Scottish government to host inaugural Global
Ethical Finance Forum in the country’s financial capital |
Marketing & Media Manager MEGA,
Edinburgh, May 12, 2015 |
The
nation that gave birth to various ethical finance initiatives to serve
as a backdrop to a historic platform aimed at spurring a conversation
within the large but historically segmented ethical finance sector.
The Global Ethical
Finance Forum (GEFF) was formally announced today by its organizers,
Middle East Global Advisors (MEGA), as taking place in early September.
Hosted by the Scottish Government and supported by Visit Scotland, the
Forum is a historic initiative in conjunction with the Islamic Finance
Council UK (IFC UK) and Thomson Reuters. It is envisaged to be the
inaugural international platform that aspires to bridge the various
disconnected segments in the ethical finance industry which are
currently separated by perceptions or geographical differences. The
long-term aim for the forum is to support the development of common
practices and ultimately promote the adoption of global standards for
the industry.
Happening
exclusively alongside GEFF is the launch of the Responsible Finance
Institute (RFI). Given the wide separation among various segments of
ethical finance, there has never been a greater need for a common
platform to bring the industry together. The RFI aims to provide that
platform and engage the industry in a dialogue which will result in
increased opportunities for convergence and collaboration.
Speaking ahead of
the forum, Sarah Marten, CEO of the RFI, commented that “GEFF's
objectives are to harness the collective strengths of the various forms
of responsible finance and investing (inclusive of Islamic finance) that
together comprise more than US$11 trillion dollars.” Sarah added that
global sustainable development challenges such as climate change and
poverty line can hardly be addressed without responsible finance that
integrates social, environmental and governance concerns into the
financing and investment decision making of financial institutions. She
concluded that the “RFI is proud to partner with GEFF in this important
event and looks forward to working towards developing and further
expanding responsible finance, inclusive of Islamic finance.”
GEFF 2015 is
particularly targeted at institutional investors, asset owners,
policymakers, academics and other stakeholders within the Islamic
finance; environmental, social & governance (ESG); and socially
responsible investing (SRI) segments.
Also speaking
ahead of the conference, Dr. Sayd Farook, Global Head Islamic Capital
Markets at Thomson Reuters, stated: “Thomson Reuters is proud to be the
Knowledge Partner for the inaugural Global Ethical Finance Forum, a
platform that will serve to connect the large but fragmented ethical /
responsible finance and investment communities. We believe that now is
an opportune time to expand the capacity of ethical finance, inclusive
of Islamic finance and socially responsible investment (SRI), to better
serve people and the overall economy, and Thomson Reuters is
participating in a number of initiatives to promote convergence and
collaboration.”
Thomson Reuters’
role at GEFF is significant in large part due to the fact that the
global media conglomerate has chosen the Forum for the exclusive launch
of the Responsible Finance Report, produced in collaboration with the
Responsible Finance Institute (RFI).
“The Responsible
Finance Report,” Dr. Farook continued, “will be the first report to
rigorously measure the size and geographic concentrations of the entire
ethical finance and SRI industry, inclusive of the Islamic banking and
finance industry, assess its commonalities and present opportunities for
convergence in customers, processes and practices. Therefore, we share
much in common with the objectives of GEFF 2015.”
The decision of
selecting Scotland as the host country for the first Global Ethical
Finance Forum was driven in large part to Scotland’s very strong
heritage in ethical finance. Ehsan Abbas, Chairman of MEGA, lauded
Scotland’s “immeasurable contribution to the creation of financial
institutions and early professional bodies specializing in ethical
finance. MEGA is delighted to work towards meeting the vision of the
very place that gave birth to Scottish Widows and the savings banks
movement.”
The Islamic
Finance Council UK (UKIFC), one of the key players promoting Scotland as
the Ethical finance hub, had hosted the 2014 Edinburgh Ethical Finance
Roundtable series. Graham Burnside, a UKIFC Advisory Board Member,
structured and documented one of the first Shariah-compliant mortgage
products operating under Scots law and strongly believes that ethics and
business can go hand-in-hand: “The demand for increased social
responsibility and ethical behavior is quickly becoming a major
transformative force within the global financial services industry…We
are particularly excited about bringing this unique new event to
Scotland to build on the UKIFC’s existing series of ethical finance
round tables and complementing the UK Government’s recent work on
Islamic finance.”
One of GEFF’s
highlights include a Reception at the historic fortress in Edinburgh –
the iconic Edinburgh castle – and Power Debates on the future of the
fast growing sector of ethical finance. Topics to be discussed include:
building a responsible financial system that supports real economic
development; opportunities, challenges and risks; convergence of the
different spheres of ethical finance; the role of Islamic finance in the
ethical space; and the influence of technology and disruptive innovation
to facilitate responsible finance. The Forum is therefore seen as a
unique opportunity for all stakeholders to shape the future of the
ethical finance industry.
GEFF will take
place on the 1st and 2nd of September at the historic Balmoral Hotel in
downtown Edinburgh, one of Europe’s cultural & literary capitals.
Middle East Global
Advisors (MEGA) is the gateway connectivity and intelligence platform to
opportunities in the rapidly developing economic region that stretches
all the way from Morocco in the West to Indonesia in the East - The
Middle East North Africa South Asia (MENASA) connection. They pride
themselves for being at the heart of these diverse markets for over 22
years.
www.megaevents.net
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