ISRA Colloquium 2012: the Arabic call for papers

What was being invited?

The theme can be rendered as Islamic finance amid economic challenges: moving forward. This is a new English rendering of the Arabic theme, not an official translated programme. The call invited scholars, experts, academics, industry practitioners and postgraduate students to submit theoretical or applied research. Its three tracks were Islamic banking, the Islamic capital market, and takaful/retakaful. Suggested topics were expressly non-exhaustive. [AR12: invitation and tracks]

The invitation names professional and study roles; it does not state a religion-based participation restriction. It does not establish eligibility for any financial product. A topic on an event agenda is a question for research, not proof that a product is approved, affordable or effective.

Read the dates as an announcement history

The Arabic call announces Kuala Lumpur on 10 October 2012 and prints 24 Dhu al-Qa‘dah 1433H alongside it. These are the original announced dates, not our confirmation that the event took place that day. A separate Bank Negara Malaysia opening speech records 27 November 2012, Sasana Kijang, Kuala Lumpur, for the 2nd ISRA Colloquium with the same English theme. No rescheduling notice was recovered to connect the two versions conclusively. Keep both dated records when citing the event. [AR12: place/date] [BNM12: delivery date/venue]

What authors had to submit

Historically, the abstract could be in English or Arabic and was to contain 250–500 words, including keywords. It had to identify the title, main/sub-track, all authors and affiliations, lead author’s email and word count. A biography of around 300 words was required separately from the abstract word count. The committee would consider original, previously unpublished work; the abstract should show new findings and important conclusions. These were submission requirements, not findings established by the event. [AR12: abstract]

English abstracts used Times New Roman 12; Arabic abstracts used Traditional Arabic 18, with one-inch left and right margins. The title page required author names, departments/institutions, keywords, postal/email addresses, telephone/fax and a corresponding author if different from the lead author. The first paper page was to carry the title and abstract. Papers and abstracts were to be sent by email only; the call also requested a short author introduction covering affiliation, qualifications, speciality and contact details. The author was legally responsible for originality; papers were subject to peer review, and selected distinguished papers could be chosen for the ISRA journal. [AR12: submission guidance 1–7]

The old anti-spam display obscures the address, but static decoding of the archived HTML recovers [email protected] as the historical abstract address. This closed-call contact is recorded for citation, not as a current submission channel. No application form is provided. [AR12: abstract email script] The full paper’s length, a current submission channel and any later programme revision are not established by this copy.

What attendance cost in that call

These are historical registration amounts quoted in the Arabic call, not current fees or currency conversions. Student and other-participant categories had different charges. The early-registration discount required payment before 15 September 2012. ISRA expressly did not bear speakers’ or participants’ travel and accommodation expenses. The copy does not specify refund terms or an early-registration seat guarantee. [AR12: conference fees]

Banking, capital markets and takaful topics

New editorial example: someone comparing a financing agreement with a protection certificate can use the three tracks to organise questions. For financing, trace who receives the money, who owns an asset and who owes payment. For an investment, ask what right the instrument creates and who bears a loss. For takaful, read contributions, covered events and exclusions in the actual certificate. The call itself supplies none of those product terms.

The banking topics included risk, ethics, treasury, wealth management, product engineering, participation-based finance and governance. Capital-market topics included funds, liquidity, asset-backed securities, rating, private equity/venture capital, structured products/derivatives and sukuk issuance. Takaful topics included underwriting, innovation, fund support/investment, sales/distribution and legal, regulatory and fiqh questions. This is a new condensed topic summary; use the Arabic original for the complete wording. [AR12: three tracks]

A useful citation and reading checklist

• Cite ISRA, the Arabic call, its displayed publication/modification dates and the archive capture date. Access on 6 October 2026 is not its publication date.
• Describe 10 October as the date announced in the early call. Cite the BNM speech separately for 27 November; do not invent a postponement explanation.
• Label English/Bahasa Melayu prose as a new summary or translation. Keep the Arabic theme and original link with it.
• Use the call for research interests and submission history. For a claimed result, locate the actual paper; for a present product decision, check dated provider documents.

Related reading

• Maqasid: what should Islamic finance achieve for people?
• Who checks Shariah compliance in Malaysia?
• Shariah-compliant investing: shares, funds and realistic expectations
• Sukuk for beginners: what do investors actually own?