Morocco: Takaful to be launched soon
Source: Middle East Insurance Review | May 2021
Morocco is putting the final touches on takaful, which is seen as key to supporting the growth of participatory finance in the country mainly triggered by real estate.
Speaking at a national insurance seminar, Central Bank governor Abdellatif Jouahri said takaful will be launched soon as the main stakeholders are working together to finalise the details, reported The North Africa Post.
A takaful law has been approved by Parliament but regulatory bodies have yet to give permits to companies that want to engage in this segment of insurance.
The Central Bank approved the first five participatory banks in January 2017. Subsequent legislation was passed in 2018 and 2019 regarding solvency and liquidity, respectively. Participatory banks extended financing worth MAD13.5bn ($1.5bn) in 2020 from MAD9.1bn in 2019. Takaful is seen as needed to insure the underlying assets offered as collateral for the financing.
Most of Morocco’s largest banks have Islamic finance branches, including Attijariwafa Bank, Groupe Banque Centrale Populaire, BMCE Bank of Africa, CIH Bank and Credit Agricole du Maroc. Subsidiaries of the main French banks with operations in Morocco – including Societe Generale, BNP Paribas and Credit Agricole’s Islamic Development Bank – have also been approved to offer Islamic financial services. M
MAD1 = $0.11