CIMA First Professional Accountancy Body To Offer Islamic Finance Global Qualification

CIMA (the Chartered Institute of Management Accountants) is the first professional chartered accountancy body to offer a global qualification in Islamic Finance, which the CIMA Centre of Excellence is launching today (05 December).

The Islamic finance industry is thought to be worth between £150bn and £250bn, and is growing at an estimated rate of 15 – 20%. In an exciting new development in meeting the needs of its employer and student stakeholders, CIMA today launches a global qualification in Islamic Finance. We believe that this is a first for a professional accountancy body. To date, few courses are available in this area of finance and normally comprise of short 1 – 3 day events. CIMA’s self-study qualification has been developed alongside the International Institute of Islamic Finance, with detailed input from its CEO Dr Mohd Daud Bakar, a renowned Shari’ah Scholar.

Robert Jelly, Director of Education at CIMA, says:
"CIMA has identified that there is considerable demand from the global business community to develop the knowledge and skills required to service this increasingly important market. The CIMA Islamic Finance qualification is the first to be created in conjunction with an Advisory Group made up of academics, practitioners and scholars of Shari’ah, and will assist employers in the City of London and other major financial centres throughout the world in equipping their employees to develop financial products."

CIMA’s new qualification is available at Certificate level and comprises four modules: Islamic commercial law; Islamic banking and takaful (insurance); Islamic capital markets and instruments; and accounting for Islamic financial institutions. It is estimated that a student can complete these modules in between 2 – 6 months depending upon prior experience.

The qualification is available across the globe as a series of study guides, revision kits and a microsite and provides students with a thorough knowledge of the theoretical and religious aspects that underpin Islamic finance. On completing the Certificate, students will be comfortable with the array of Arabic terminology used throughout as well as the regulations which govern Islamic finance in practice.