Lord Sheikh Delivers Keynote at Global Ethical Finance Forum
Under the patronage of the Scottish Government, and supported by the UK Government, GEFF 2017 took place at the RBS Conference Centre in Edinburgh on 13th / 14th September. With the theme “Ethical Finance: Merging Profit & Purpose”, the Forum’s aspiration was to serve as a platform of convergence and collaboration across the responsible finance universe, and to forge a vision for a more inclusive and sustainable financial system. GEFF2017 was attended by Islamic and ethical finance practitioners from across the globe.
Lord Sheikh was invited to deliver a keynote address within which he took the opportunity to raise awareness of the APPGIF and outline the synergy between Islamic and ethical finance. Lord Sheikh said:
“As Muslim, and having developed and grown successful financial businesses, I have a strong personal interest in both Islamic and ethical financial. Through my role as Patron of the UKIFC I also have a close affinity with Scotland. The Global Ethical Finance Forum is an excellent opportunity for me to combine these interests
This year’s forum will build on the conversations from 2015 to look at “Ethical Finance: Merging Profit & Purpose”. In so doing it will consider topics such as Sustainable Capitalism, Impact Investments, Sustainable Development Goals, Green Bonds and Sukuk, ESG Risk Mitigation, and the role of ethics in finance.
In my business career as an independent financial advisor I have supported mutual life offices and building societies as I believe in mutuality and transparency which, of course, are the hallmarks of Islamic and ethical finance.
Today, as Chairman of four businesses I firmly believe in strong governance and that operating in an ethical and transparent manner does not have a detrimental impact on profit.”
Please click here to download Lord Sheikh’s speech.
