Islamic Finance

The Chancellor, Alistair Darling, delivered the 2009 Budget on 22 April 2009. This update is our summary and analysis of the key business tax announcements.

Our summary of the key business tax announcements in the 2009 Pre-Budget Report.

Our summary of the key business tax announcements in the 23 March 2011 Budget. 70 leading tax practitioners told us what they thought of the Budget. We have published an article incorporating their views: 2011 Budget: Keep calm and carry on.

An update on the AAOIFI's plan to develop new governance standards for Islamic finance scholars.

An amended version of the Finance Bill 2008 was published on 23 June 2008 (see the Finance Bill 2008, as amended in the Committee and in Public Bill Committee and ordered to be printed on 19 June 2008). This follows the publication of the first version of the Finance Bill 2008 on 27 March 2008 (see Legal update, Finance Bill 2008).We will shortly update the legislation trackers and all relevant PLC maintained resources to reflect the contents of the amended Bill.

An ask the team question on Islamic finance standard form documents.

In a speech on 30 January 2007, the Economic Secretary to the Treasury, Ed Balls, set out reforms in the tax and regulatory system to ensure development of Sharia-compliant products.

Gordon Brown, the Chancellor of the Exchequer, delivered his eleventh and (probably) final Budget speech on 21 March 2007.

On 12 March 2008, the Chancellor, Alistair Darling, delivered his first Budget speech. This update covers the key announcements affecting the finance industry.

In the 2007 Budget, Gordon Brown, then Chancellor, announced that the 10% starting rate of income tax would be abolished for earnings and pensions income with effect from 6 April 2008 (see Legal update, Budget 2007: Income tax allowances, rates and bands). However, this proved very unpopular as the effect would be to make the poorest members of society worse off. There were calls for the government to take action to counteract this effect (see Legal update, 10% starting rate: backbenchers withdraw Finance Bill amendment after Chancellor promises help).In response to this, on 13 May 2008, the current Chancellor, Alistair Darling, announced the following amendments to the income tax regime:1. Increasing the personal allowance for 2008/09 by £600, to £6,035, with effect from September 2008 but backdated to 6 April 2008.2. Reducing the higher-rate income tax threshold by £600 (presumably, also backdated to 6 April 2008). HMRC explained on its website that the higher-rate threshold is the total of the personal allowance and the basic rate limit, meaning that the basic rate limit (the level of taxable earnings, after the personal allowance is applied, from which higher-rate tax applies) would be decreased by £1,200 in total, to £34,800. The idea is to ensure that higher-rate taxpayers, who would be largely unaffected by the abolition of the starting rate, do not benefit from increased personal allowances.Draft legislation effecting these changes is to be included in

HM Treasury is consulting on secondary legislation that will bring Home Reversion and Ijara home financing arrangements within the regulatory regime operated by the Financial Services Authority. The main focus of the consultation paper is on the definitions of the various products to be brought within the regulatory regime and to be excluded from it. Note added August 2006: An Addendum to the FSA consultation on home reversion and home purchase plans has been published. A small number of draft rules were unfortunately missing from the draft Handbook text in Appendix 1 of CP06/8 (Volume 2). In view of the omission, the FSA is re-opening CP06/8, for the purpose of consulting on the draft rules relating to arrears and repossessions, for a period of three weeks (from 9 to 31 August 2006).The FSA intends to publish a policy statement in relation to CP06/8 later this year, afetr the necessary secondary legislation has been amended.

On 2 June 2008, the Government published its response to the consultation paper entitled "Government sterling sukuk issuance: a consultation" (see Legal update, Consultation on sukuk published). A number of issues raised during the consultation process need to be resolved before the Government can issue sukuk. Some of these could have wider impact. In particular: 1) Measures are already being taken in the Finance Bill 2008 to facilitate sukuk issuance, including classifying sukuk as loan capital for stamp duty purposes (see Legal update, Budget 2008: Finance issues). 2) The structures used for Islamic financial products have posed challenges with respect to their regulatory treatment (for example, sukuk often fall within the definition of a collective investment scheme but conventional equivalents do not). HM Treasury and the FSA are developing proposals to ensure that a Government sukuk issuance (and any other issued using similar documentation) is regulated in the same way as a conventional equivalent. 3) The FSA is considering how to treat sukuk for risk-weighting capital adequacy purposes. 4) The Government is to work with Euroclear to ensure an appropriate settlement system within CREST. 5) The Government is considering legislation to deal with the different treatment of sukuk as compared to conventional products under the SDLT regime. A consultation paper on this issue will be published on 26 June 2008. An update on this on-going work will be provided by the

On 26 January, the world's largest Sukuk listed on the Dubai International Financial Exchange. This article explains the key features of that issue.

A diagram showing a typical ijara structure. For more on ijara and an overview of Islamic finance, see Practice note, Islamic finance: UK law overview.  

A diagram showing a typical mudaraba structure. For more on mudaraba and an overview of Islamic finance, see Practice note, Islamic finance: UK law overview.  

A diagram showing a typical musharaka structure. For more on musharaka and an overview of Islamic finance, see Practice note, Islamic finance: UK law overview.

A diagram showing a typical sukuk al ijara structure. For more on sukuk al ijara and an overview of Islamic finance, see Practice note, Islamic finance: UK law overview.  

A diagram of the structure of a typical sukuk al-murabaha transaction.

A diagram showing a structure of a typical sukuk al-salam transaction.

The Tax Treatment of Financing Costs and Income (Available Amount) Regulations 2010 (SI 2010/2929) were made on 8 December 2010.

On 12 September 2006, the International Swaps and Derivatives Association (ISDA) and the International Islamic Financial Market (IIFM) signed a memorandum of understanding for developing a master agreement for documenting privately negotiated sharia-compliant derivatives transactions. For more information on sharia-compliant transactions, see Practice note, Introduction to Islamic finance. ISDA and IIFM aim for the master agreement to be accepted by sharia advisors and to become a standard document for sharia-compliant derivatives. For more information, see ISDA press release.

An update about the announcement by the government on 19 March 2009, and the draft legislation subsequently published by HMRC, restricting tax relief for interest payments on loans designed to produce a guaranteed post-tax profit.

An update on the extensions made on 20 October 2008 to HMRC's guidance on recognised stock exchanges.

On 5 July 2006, the Finance No.2 Bill completed its passage through the House of Commons where, in parts, it was heavily debated and amended. The final text of the bill is due to be published on 10 July 2006. The text will be available from the Office of Public Sector Information. The bill is expected to receive Royal Assent either during the week commencing 17 July 2006 or the week commencing 24 July 2006. PLC Finance will publish an update on the bill when it receives Royal Assent covering those areas of interest to finance lawyers such as alternative finance arrangements (Islamic or Shari'a compliant finance), asset finance, securitisation and anti avoidance. For a detailed discussion of the measures announced in the Budget earlier this year, see Legal update, Budget 2006: detailed analysis. See also Legal update, Revenue close repo tax loophole and Legal update, Revenue attacks financial arrangement schemes for information on issues that have been introduced subsequent to the Budget.

The Finance Act 2007 was given Royal Assent on 19 July 2007. The Act includes provisions relating to repos, Islamic finance and withholding tax.

The Finance Act 2008 received Royal Assent on 21 July 2008 (see PLC Tax, Legal update, Finance Act 2008 receives Royal Assent). The Act introduced certain measures which will have an impact on finance transactions.

An update on provisions of the Finance Act 2009 (the 2009 Act) of interest to finance lawyers. The 2009 Act received Royal Assent on 21 July 2009.

The Finance Bill 2008 is scheduled to proceed to Committee of the Whole House stage, for debate in the House of Commons, on the 28 and 29 April 2008.We will publish a further update, when details of the measures to be debated in the Committee of the Whole House are published.For details of the Finance Bill 2008 (first draft) as published on 27 March 2008, see Legal update, Finance Bill 2008.Source:Progress of Finance Bill 2008.

On 28 April 2008, the following clauses of the Finance Bill 2008 (as to which, see Legal update, Finance Bill 2008) were agreed, unamended, by the Committee of the Whole House of Commons:1. Clause 3 (Abolition of starting and savings rates, and creation of starting rate for savings).2. Clause 5 (Small companies' rates and fractions for financial year 2008).3. Clause 6 (Rate of capital gains tax).4. Clause 21 (Amusement machine licence duty).Source: Committee of the Whole House Proceedings as at 28 April 2008; House of Commons Committee Stage debate: 28 April 2008.

Royal Assent to the Finance Bill 2008 will be granted between 18 July 2008 and 5 August 2008. This is because:1. Royal Assent can be given any time after the House of Lords debate on the Finance Bill 2008 (scheduled for 18 July 2008).2. The Budget 2008 resolutions will expire on 5 August 2008 unless the Finance Bill 2008 receives Royal Assent by then (under section 1 of the Provisional Collection of Taxes Act 1968).Source: Progress of the Finance Bill: date of House of Lords debate.

On 17 June 2008, the following clauses of, and Schedule to, the Finance Bill 2008 were agreed, unamended unless otherwise stated, by the Public Bill Committee of the House of Commons:1. Clause 147 (Air passenger duty).2. Clause 148 (Stamp duty and stamp duty reserve tax: alternative finance investment bonds). Minor government amendments agreed (see Legal update, Finance Bill 2008: government tables amendments covering alternative finance arrangements, R&D tax relief and non-domiciliaries).3. Clauses 149 to 151 and Schedule 46 (Alternative property finance: anti-avoidance, power to vary, government borrowing). The minister announced that a consultation document relating to possible double charges to stamp duty land tax in public issues of sharia-compliant debt will be published on 26 June.4. Clause 152 (Power of Treasury to make payments).5. Clause 153 (Payments from certain Exchequer accounts: mechanism).6. Clause 154 (Power to give statutory effect to concessions).7. Clause 155 (Fuel duty: definition of "ultra low sulphur diesel").8. Clause 156 (Duties: abolition of disregard of fractions of penny).9. Clauses 157 (National savings).10. Clause 158 (EU emissions trading: criminal offences).The debate on clause 22 (periods of residence) was adjourned before the clause was agreed. The minister stated that the government is looking at whether a statutory test of individual residence could be developed.Source: 21st sitting Commons Committee stage debate (17 June, mornin

The Finance Bill 2008 received its second reading in the House of Commons on 21 April 2008. For the Hansard transcript of the debate, see Second reading. As expected, much of the debate focused on the withdrawal of the 10% starting rate (clause 3 of the Finance Bill 2008). John McFall (Chairman of the Treasury Committee) offered to ask the Treasury Committee to explore measures with the government that would compensate for the withdrawal of the 10% starting rate with a view to reporting in June or July. While the Chief Secretary to the Treasury welcomed the offer, she indicated that it would be with a view to reporting back in advance of the Pre-Budget Report. Labour backbenchers have tabled an amendment seeking to defer the introduction of clause 3. The opposition are expected to table further amendments on Monday. A new early day motion was also lodged by the opposition. Clauses 3, 5, 6, 15, 21, 49, 90 and 117 and new Clauses amending section 74 of the Finance Act 2003 were committed to a Committee of the whole House (to be debated on 28 and 29 April 2008) with the remainder of the Bill committed to a Public Bill Committee (dates to be announced).For links to the debates and amendments tabled, see Finance Bill 2007-2008.

Do you have a trainee or newly qualified lawyer joining your finance team? Are you a trainee or newly qualified lawyer wondering what finance transactions are all about? Have you moved in house and find yourself having to get to grips with finance law? If so, have a look at the following materials to get an overview of the law and practice of finance transactions. Remember to arrange for any new recruits to get access to PLC Finance and ensure they are signed up to receive our weekly and/or monthly e-mails. To do this, please e-mail info@practicallaw.com or contact your account manager on 020 7202 1220. If you do not subscribe to PLC Finance, see Request a free trial or call 020 7202 1220 to register your interest in a free trial.

Financial Services and Markets Act 2000 (Regulated Activities) (Amendment) (No.2) Order 2006,as originally made.

International Innovative Technologies has become the first British company to raise money by issuing sukuk.

A US$350 million sukuk issued by Bahrain has become the first sovereign Islamic bond to be listed in London. A London listing was chosen, partly, to attract more investors, particularly those in Europe.Development of Islamic finance is part of the Government's policy to promote the competitiveness of London as a financial centre. Since 2003 it has been working to level the playing field for retail and wholesale Islamic finance products to compete with more traditional products and is itself considering becoming an issuer of sukuk. This would be the first western sovereign Islamic bond (see Legal update, Consultation on sukuk published).For more information on sukuk and other Islamic finance products, see Practice note, Islamic finance: overview.Source: Financial Times, 19 March 2008.

On 20 July 2006, the London Stock Exchange listed its first Sukuk. The $200 million issue of trust certificates by a special purpose vehicle (the SPV) for National Central Cooling Company (Tabreed) PJSC (Tabreed), is also the first Sukuk issue by a company to be rated and the first to list on a EU regulated market following the introduction of the EU Prospectus Directive 2003/71/EC. "The issue is a landmark transaction that highlights the continued growth in the financial activity in the Middle East and the new popularity of London listings among Middle East issuers who had previously preferred Luxembourg," says Luma Saqqaf, head of the Islamic finance group at Linklaters, who advised Tabreed. Anzal Mohammed, a senior associate at Allen & Overy, who advised the joint bookrunners and joint lead managers, agrees: "London should now become the focus for Sukuk issues on the regulated markets in Europe".

On 5 March 2007, Fitch Ratings published three Islamic finance reports: 1) Islamic banking - factors in risk assessment. This report gives an introduction to Islamic banking and describes briefly the different Islamic financial products. It concludes that the rating of a dedicated Islamic bank should be assessed in the same way as a conventional bank, examining its financing and lending policy, regulatory environment, corporate governance practices etc. 2) Demystifying corporate sukuk. This report outlines a typical sukuk structure. It explains that since sukuk documentation is subject to similar jurisdiction and enforcement provisions as conventional bonds, most of the risks in sukuk transactions are not different from those seen in conventional bond structures. 3) Fitch Ratings' approach to rating sukuk. This report outlines Fitch's approach to rating sukuk. Currently, depending on the structure of the bond, Fitch's rating of the bond may be linked to the rating of the originator of the transaction or to the underlying assets provided it satisfies Fitch's requirements for a true securitisation. For more information on sukuk and other Islamic finance structures, see Practice note, Introduction to Islamic finance. For information on credit ratings, see Practice note, Credit ratings.

An update on the FSA and HM Treasury's joint consultation paper on the legislative framework for the regulation of alternative finance investment bonds (sukuk) published on 10 December 2008.

An update on the FSA's consultation on proposed amendments to the regulation of sukuk.

Following publication earlier in September 2006 of secondary legislation to bring home reversions and Ijara home financing products within the regulatory regime operated by the FSA, on 22 September 2006 the FSA published details of the authorisation process for firms to apply to be regulated for these products. The authorisation process is subject to the FSA publishing its rules on these products, which cannot take place until Parliament approves the secondary legislation. The FSA hopes to publish its rules in early November 2006 and will begin to accept applications from 6 November 2006. The new regime will start on 6 April 2007. For more information, see FSA press release and Legal update, Secondary legislation for home reversions and Ijara home financing arrangements published.

The Gulf Bond and Sukuk Association (GBSA) has published a set of best practice standards for bond and sukuk issuers in the Middle East region.

On 11 December 2006, HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) published Information Sheet 11/06, which sets out guidance on the VAT treatment of certain Islamic products currently being offered to the general public, businesses and other financial institutions by various banks in the UK. The Information Sheet should be read by providers of Islamic products and by those introducing customers to those providers. The VAT treatment outlined should be applied immediately. The Information Sheet is intended to supplement existing HMRC guidance.

On 9 July 2008, HM Treasury (HMT) a speech by Kitty Ussher, Economic Secretary to the Treasury, given at the World Islamic Banking Conference in London on 8 July 2008. In her speech, Ms Ussher said the Government had been working hard to encourage the development of an Islamic finance sector in the UK. She referred to HMT's June 2008 feedback statement (Feedback Statement) which set out the Government's response to HMT's November 2007 consultation on the potential for the Government to become an issuer of sukuk, the Islamic alternative to conventional debt capital market instruments, in the wholesale sterling market. For further information on the Feedback Statement, see Legal update, HM Treasury issues feedback on responses to its consultation on the Government becoming an issuer of Islamic financial instruments.Ms Ussher said that the Government is seeking to address the remaining barriers to a sovereign sukuk issuance. If all outstanding issues can be resolved, the intention is to issue a rolling programme of up to approximately £2 billion of Government sukuk. She said the Government hoped to make a decision on this later in 2008.HMT has accepted that the variety of contractual structures of different types of sukuk presents a challenge to regulators. The Feedback Statement noted that HMT and FSA are agreed, in principle, that Government sukuk (and any other sukuk issued using equivalent documentation) should be regulated in the same way as a conventional equiv

On 30 January 2007, the International Capital Market Association (ICMA) and the International Islamic Finance Market (IIFM) signed a memorandum of understanding to work jointly on developing the international Islamic financial markets. The two institutions aim to focus on standardising the Sukuk market. They will establish a joint working group to develop standardised contracts, standardised practices for secondary market transactions and standardised practices for trading Sukuk and other Islamic financial instruments. For more information, see the press release. For further information on Sukuks, see Legal updates, Sukuks: the growth of Islamic finance, and First Sukuk lists on London Stock Exchange. For background information on Islamic finance, see Practice note, Introduction to Islamic finance.

The Islamic Financial Services Board has published a standard entitled "Disclosures to promote transparency and market discipline for institutions offering Islamic financial services (excluding Islamic insurance (Takaful) institutions and Islamic mutual funds)" (the Standard).The Standard is intended to be applied to institutions offering Islamic financial services (IIFS), including Islamic window operations of conventional banks. It supplements the transparency and bank governance requirements issued by the Basel Committee on Banking Supervision and the disclosure standards (Pillar 3) contained in the Basel Capital Accord. The Standard does this by recommending disclosures to be made by IIFS bearing in mind their specific features and those of the products offered by them. These features tend not to be well-captured in the existing standards on transparency and disclosure since these are geared more to conventional banks.For further information on Islamic finance, see Practice note, Islamic finance: overview and for further information on Basel II, see Practice note, Basel II: an overview.

An update on the IFSB's publication of two new standards.

An update on the publication by ISDA and IIFM on 9 March 2010 of an explanatory memorandum relating to the tahawwut (hedging) master agreement.

An update on the International Islamic Financial Market's publication of its reference paper on i’aadat al shira’a (repo alternative) concepts and structuring possibilities.

On 30 September 2008, the International Organization of Securities Commissions (IOSCO) published a report assessing the compatibility of its core principles of securities regulation (the Principles) with the products and practices of the Islamic securities market (the Report). The Report aims to further the understanding of regulatory issues in Islamic finance and builds on a 2004 report of the IOSCO Islamic capital market task force. IOSCO conclude the Principles are compatible with the Islamic securities market, although their implementation may benefit from further consideration in some areas. It therefore believes there is no need to formulate separate regulatory principles for Islamic capital markets. The Report also makes various recommendations. These include there should be more exchange of information and co-operation between regulators, to increase their awareness of the products and practices of Islamic finance. For information on the Principles, see Legal update, IOSCO publishes updated paper on the principles of securities regulation. For information on Islamic securities including sukuk, see Practice note, Islamic finance: overview.

An introduction to some of the issues surrounding the development of Islamic derivatives and an outline of some of the key structures including Sharia compliant cross-currency swaps, profit rate swaps, foreign exchange options and total return swaps. The author would like to thank Rahul Chatterji of Allen & Overy LLP for his help in preparing this practice note.

This article considers the impact that the recent growth of Islamic finance is having on the cross-border legal market, and identifies some of the leading experts in this area.

An update on two papers published by HM Treasury and the Financial Services Authority.

An introduction to standard documents for sharia-compliant transactions and links to online resources.

This article examines the basic principles of Sharia-compliant finance transactions.

An examination of the basic principles of Sharia-compliant finance transactions.

An update on publication by the Islamic Financial Services Board of exposure draft guiding principles.

An article explaining the features of Islamic project finance and highlighting the parallels to, and principal differences with, conventional project financing. 

Our summary of the key business tax announcements in the 22 June 2010 Budget. (Free access.) Leading tax practitioners told us what they see as the most important announcements in the Budget, see Article, June 2010 Budget: the second half.

In this article, we summarise the key business tax changes made by the Finance Act 2008, which received Royal Assent on 21 July 2008. These include wide-ranging reforms of capital gains tax, capital allowances, rates of tax and the taxation of non-domiciliaries which apply from April 2008 and significant changes to HMRC information powers which are likely to come into effect in April 2009.

A practice note listing key forthcoming dates for UK finance lawyers.

A brief summary of what the legislation covers and commencement provisions, with links to further information.

Our summary of the key business tax announcements in the 24 March 2010 Budget. See what other tax practitioners thought were the highlights of the Budget: Article, March 2010: When is a Budget not a Budget? Tax practitioners comment.

HMRC has designated MICEX as a recognised stock exchange under section 1005(1)(b) of the Income Tax Act 2007, with effect from 5 January 2011. 

The Land Registry has published a practice guide on the registration requirements for certain types of Islamic financing arrangements used in the purchase of land.

A legal update about the announcement by HMRC that the NASDAQ OMX Tallinn and the Bahamas International Securities Exchange have obtained "recognised stock exchange" status.

On 7 February 2008, the Financial Times reported that the Sharia board of the Accounting and Auditing Organisation for Islamic Financial Institutions is due to give its opinion next week on whether sukuk are, in fact, Sharia-compliant. The opinion will be of interest to those working on structuring new issues of sukuk. It will be interesting to see whether the opinion covers existing sukuk - these will have been approved by Sharia committees as Sharia-complaint prior to issue. For more on Islamic finance, including the approval process, see Practice note, Introduction to Islamic finance.

An update on the coming into force of the material detriment provisions inserted in the Pensions Act 2004 by the Pensions Act 2008.

Articles published in the November 2012 issue of PLC Magazine which may be of interest to PLC Finance subscribers.

PLC Tax has updated its legislation trackers to reflect developments in July 2011.

PLC Tax has updated its legislation trackers to reflect developments in May 2011.

An update on the Alternative Finance Arrangements (Amendment) Order 2009 which comes into force on 15 October 2009.

On 25 June 2008, the Financial Times published an article reviewing the impact of the credit crunch and the new Sharia standards introduced by Sheikh Muhammad Taqi Usmani in March on sukuk. The article describes, amongst other things, how issuers are using ijara (leasing) structures in preference to sukuk.

Our practice note on the VAT treatment of sharia-compliant transactions has been substantially revised and expanded by its new contributor, Tarlochan Lall of Monckton Chambers.

A legal update about the Stamp Duty Land Tax (Alternative Finance Investment Bonds) Regulations 2010 (SI 2010/814), made on 16 March 2010.

Secondary legislation for the regulation of Home Reversion and Home Purchase Plans: A consultation (HM Treasury).This item is available in pdf format only and may take some time to download.

Buoyant oil prices have continued to drive a boom in the Middle East and North Africa region, and have produced a growing potential investor base for both regional and global private equity. Private equity represents a natural fit for Muslim investors, as returns are earned through active participation in the risks of business.

This note considers the UK VAT treatment of certain sharia-compliant financing structures.

The current relief from stamp duty land tax for certain Shari'ah mortgages will be extended.

This Law Firm Publication by SNR Denton examines the developments in Saudi Arabia that have resulted in the recent growth in the global market for sukuk (Shari’ah-compliant bonds). Although the Saudi sukuk market currently only has eight publicly listed sukuk issued by a few companies, other companies in Saudi Arabia are expected to utilise sukuk options throughout 2012.

Many financing structures used in the last decade have been through previous periods of market disruption and testing, where participants have had to consider in detail their position under the structure. There is no similar precedent for the sukuk market, so sukuk structures are being tested for the first time, sometimes with a worrying difference between legal reality and market perception.

A document containing items formerly found in PLC Tax legislation trackers but that are now in force.

A document tracking the development of certain notable pieces of proposed new legislation relating to property, energy and environment taxation.

On 16 August 2007, the Islamic Finance Experts Group, a group set up to act as an industry sounding board on Islamic finance for HM Treasury and the FSA, held its first meeting. The focus of the meeting was to discuss the UK government's feasibility study into issuing sovereign sukuk and potential benefits for the City and retail customers of the government issuing sovereign sukuk. The government intends to have more discussions before making a decision on whether to issue a sterling sovereign sukuk. The issuance of sovereign sukuk is a part of the government's plans for Islamic finance, which also include: 1) Ensuring that Britain is a global centre for Islamic finance and trade and a strong financial partner for emerging markets as pursued by the High Level Group set up by the Chancellor. 2) Creating a level playing field for alternative finance and investments, such as Islamic finance, in the retail market. For more information on the government's plans for Islamic finance, see Legal update, Balls sets out tax and regulatory reforms for development of Islamic financial products and Legal update, Finance Act 2007: Royal Assent. For more information on the meeting, see the HM Treasury press release. For more information on sukuk and other Islamic finance structures, see Practice note, Islamic finance: overview.

A brief overview of some legal developments affecting finance lawyers that can be expected in 2007.