I had the pleasure speaking yesterday at a panel on Islamic Finance at the District of Columbia Bar Association yesterday. Other panelists were Andrew Metcalf, a partner at King & Spalding’s New York office who practices Islamic Finance, and Babback Sabahi, Senior Counsel at the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

I provided an initial overview of what Islamic Finance is, how it came into being, the general principles (and the oft-asked question “how do banks make money when they don’t charge interest”).  Mr. Metcalf spoke on how deals are structured, providing examples of Sukuk transactions.  He was followed by Mr. Sabahi, who spoke on regulatory concerns related to the adoption and accommodation of Sharia-compliant financial instruments.