Job Purpose:

• Responsible to continuously monitor the compliance of IFI’s businesses and activities in the light of applicable guidelines issued by the Higher Shari’ah Authority of the UAE Central Bank, Internal Shari’ah Supervision Committee (ISSC) and the Division Head.
• Responsible for satisfactory capacity building across the organization including need identification and material preparation.
• Conduct research and contribute articles on issues related to Islamic Banking and Finance to generate ideas around product innovation and better governance and controls

Key Result Areas:

FIELD VISITS:

Manual & Calendar:

• Develop and maintain a comprehensive Shari’ah Field Visits Manual in consultation with the Division Head, and incorporate the best global practices, as per the applicable regulations and guidelines of the Internal Shari’ah Supervision Committee (ISSC).
• Develop annual Shariah Field Visits calendar in consultation with the Division Head. The calendar should be developed keeping in view:
• Criticality of the functions/business units
• Shari’ah risks related to products, processes, and functions
• Appropriate coverage of the entire Bank canvas

Planning:

• Ensure effective and efficient planning to conduct Shari’ah Field Visits. The same should include:
• Kick-off meeting with the Division Head
• Time and resource allocation
• Data gathering
• Sampling Methodology

Field work (Execution):

• Conduct a Shariah Review of Products, Activities, and Services to ascertain the extent of the Shari’ah compliance as per the guidelines issued by the HSA-UAE / ISSC / AAOIFI.
• Gather sufficient and appropriate evidence, enabling the review to reach an accurate opinion.
• Meeting with unit/department under review to discuss Shari’ah observations and related findings during the course of review.
• Reporting and Documentation:
• Issuance of report(s), highlighting the observations and the necessary action the unit has to take to address the gap.
• Related Shari’ah controls that need to be established/require attention of the unit/department.
• Develop a mechanism to monitor and track observations highlighted during the course of Shari’ah Field Visits in a timely manner.
• Escalate non-performance and delays as per agreed timelines, format and levels.
• Preparation of working papers and checklists to document the Shari’ah Field Visits.
• Prepare progress/achievement report in a comprehensive manner that also highlights significant issues that affect/may affect Shari’ah compliance of the Bank, for onward submission to the ISSC.
• Work closely and ensure timely submission of Shari’ah Field Visits report to the Head of Compliance of the Bank; as required by CB-UAE (Shari’ah Governance Standard).
• Consult with external advisors including external auditors, as and when required.
• Come up with recommendations and initiatives to enhance Shari’ah governance, Shari’ah controls and Shari’ah compliance culture within Mashreq Bank.

Training:

• Liaison with Bank’s Learning department function for the development of Training Needs Analysis and finalization of training calendar.
• Develop and maintain effective Shari’ah training material according to needs.
• Conduct Shari’ah training for Bank’s staff to meet their learning needs.
• Develop e-learning programs in coordination with Technology and Learning functions.
• Maintain learning record of the staff for onward presentation to ISSC.
• Review existing training material and suggest improvements (if required).

Research & Development:

• Conduct research on issues related to Islamic banking and finance as recommended by the ISSC and the Division Head.
• Contribute to other units within the organization in development of products and formulation of policies, procedures and contracts.
• Conduct Product Comp Scan to generate ideas for products and innovations.
• Meet annual target of writing articles/research papers.
• Keep eyes on industry developments and update team members on a timely basis.
• Contribute to other areas of development within the organization.

Knowledge skills & Experience:

• 6-7 years plus experience in an Islamic Bank in Product Development/Shari’ah Compliance Department/Audit
• Should hold at least a bachelor’s degree/professional qualification in business/banking
• Should have significant exposure to Shari’ah principles via studies, courses or extensive on the job learning
• Negotiation skills to handle bottle necks and points of argument
• Extraordinary attention to detail is required
• Strong communication and writing skills, as bank-wide interaction on technical issues are required
• Command on MS Office
• Arabic skills is a big plus