The conference on “Islamic Finance Instruments: Prospects and Opportunities for Turkey” was held on 20 June 2013 in Istanbul, Turkey. The conference was hosted by Capital Markets Board of Turkey and co-organized by Islamic Development Bank. The event was attended by the Deputy Prime Minister of Turkey H.E. Mr. Ali Babacan, Undersecretary, Undersecretariat of Treasury, Turkey H.E. Mr. Ibrahim Canakci, Chairman and CEO Borsa Istanbul H.E. Mr. Ibrahim Turhan, relevant international institutions including Statistical, Economic and Social Research and Training Centre for Islamic Countries (SESRIC), World Bank, Islamic Financial Services Board (IFSB) and International Islamic Financial Market (IIFM) as well as over 100 specialists and academicians from different countries. Dr. Umut Unal, Researcher at SESRIC, represented the Centre thereat.

The conference emphasized the drawbacks of the conventional financial system that became more apparent as the financial crises highlighted the damaging impacts on living standards as a result of macroeconomic instability. Against this backdrop, the importance of the great performance of the Islamic finance during the crises times was pointed out. The participants underscored the rapid growth in the global Islamic finance assets during the past decade, having displayed about 20 per cent of annual growth in the underlying period. In this respect, the conference also recognized the importance of Sukuk that not only allows banks to manage their liquidity and balance sheet more effectively but also offers investors with a choice of varied risk and maturity.