Bank Negara to help varsity

New Straits Times: La Trobe University will introduce a master's course in Islamic banking and finance next year with the help of Bank Negara.

It will provide students with post-graduate training in technical skills required by the global Islamic capital markets and institutions.

Industry-based certification will be provided by the International Centre of Education in Islamic Finance, a training subsidiary of BNM.

The course will help students develop expertise in Islamic banking, insurance and capital markets.

On graduation, the student will be granted full exemptions from the Chartered Islamic Finance Professional (CIFP) Part One requirement for international professional recognition.

BNM established CIFP to address the shortage of qualified people in the Islamic banking and finance sector.

Associate Prof Dr Ishaq Bhatti of La Trobe's Department of Economics and Finance, said the course, the first in Australia dedicated to Islamic banking and finance, would appeal to students from Southeast Asia, the Middle East and African countries.

Local banks -- the National Australia Bank, Kuwait Finance House, HSBC and the Muslim Community Cooperative Australia -- have offered support for the course.

"The Islamic banking and finance market has experienced substantial and unexpected growth in recent years, growing at a rate of 10 to 15 per cent a year."

To be accepted into the La Trobe Master of Islamic Finance programme, a student must hold a bachelor's degree and be proficient in English. -- Bernama