Gulf Capital and Islamic Finance: The Rise of the New Global Players

I was waiting for this book almost for two months. After reading Dubai & Co I was especially interested in the book that gives the perspective to investment and finance landscape of GCC.Also Islamic Finance has entered my interest radar recently, so reading one book that would take a view in both was a great value proposition for me.The book provides comprehensive and well grounded frameworks that give the reader excellent understanding of drivers of the competitive landscape of Gulf investment flows and how the financial market changes and evolves. From this point it clearly differentiates itself from most of the books about the region that provide either wordy description of region without giving an understanding of drivers beyond events or too academic to be read by general even educated publicThe author stimulated thinking by providing insightful comments and reasoning as a person who has hands on experience in region as an external consultant as well as senior manager in leading Islamic Finance institution which is a great blend of expertise.Book gives brilliant explanation of historical trends behind the development of Gulf investor landscape and its evolution over time. For me, it was a surprise to see the level of sophistication of Gulf investors.Especially the framework on the different modes of entry into Islamic Finance industry by conventional finance institutions is a must read for everybody who is already in the industry or has an aspiration to enter it.I am looking forward to read the next book of an author which I wish to be solely devoted to Islamic Finance and its implications on economic and social development of the region and merits of being a sound alternative to conventional finance in dev eloped countries. Currently, there is fair number of books on Islamic Finance out there; however they lack the overarching overview of the industry and its linkage to the future of the region and all Muslim community from strategic perspective.

I picked up Gulf Capital and Islamic Finance because I am interested in learning more about the economic drivers in the Middle East region. I have a fair understanding of Middle East politics and history but not much about their economic history, which is so important in their development over the past 60 years. While I enjoyed reading Mr. Rehman's book, the financial lingo was a little over my head. Thankfully, he draws upon many anecdotes and charts and graphs, which helps give a better picture of the financial sector and roles Gulf capital and Islamic finance play. I am eager to read Dubai & Co. now, as I believe it will give me a better, more basic understanding of finance in the Middle East.

Having read and enjoyed Mr. Rehman's first book, Dubai & Co., I was eager to read his latest book on Gulf capital and Islamic finance. While one can certainly read it as a continuation of his first, Gulf Capital and Islamic Finance: The Rise of the New Global Players is a much different read. By delving deeper into Gulf capital and Islamic finance, you gain a much better understanding of the financial landscape of the Middle East, a region that has become such a player on the global market as soon in the past few years. This is a must read for anyone studying or working in global financial markets.