Sharia Supervisory Board Members

Sharia Supervisory Board

A specialized board of Sharia scholars which is elected by the Bank's general body. Sharia supervision is a prominent and distinctive feature of the Palestine Islamic Bank’s activities controlling and developing the Bank’s business in accordance with Sharia’s provisions and ensuring that the Bank's business and activities are carried out in accordance with the principles of Islamic Sharia.

Sharia Supervisory board References

• The decisions, directives and circulars approved and issued by it.
• The decisions, directives and circulars approved and issued by Higher Sharia Supervisory Board
• The standards of the Accounting and Auditing Organization for Islamic Financial Institutions in Bahrain.
• Decisions, fatwas, and recommendations of seminars, councils and juristic forums are considered and approved by the Bank's Sharia Supervisory Board in relation to the Bank’s operations.

Scope of the Sharia Supervisory board

The Board has the right to fully access, without restrictions, all records, transactions and information, including those of the Bank’s employees and consultants. The board relies on the instructions of the Palestinian Monetary Authority according to banking law and sharia standards and the rules and best practices for the governance of banks in Palestine issued by the Palestinian Monetary Authority.

The decisions of the Board within its purview, and which do not contradict with the powers of the Supreme Sharia Supervisory Board founded by the Palestinian Monetary Authority, are obligatory on the Bank. In this regard, the decisions of the Board on the Bank’s transactions and activities are enforceable.

Tasks of the Sharia Supervisory Board

• Directing, monitoring and supervising the Bank’s business and activities to ensure compliance with Islamic Sharia.
• Ensuring that there is a sound and effective internal Shari'a supervisory system that ensures the application of Islamic Sharia.
• Examining the Bank’s compliance with the provisions of Islamic Sharia in all its activities.
• Providing guidance and training to the Bank's employees on compliance with Islamic Sharia.
• Expressing opinions on the extent of the Bank’s commitment to the provisions of Islamic Sharia and publishing them before the Bank’s general assembly and in its annual report.

Working mechanism of the Sharia Supervisory president

• The Board meets at the invitation of its chairman or at the invitation of the Bank management when necessary.
• The Board holds twelve regular meetings a year, one meeting each month.
• The Board receives enquiries from the executive management and from the Bank’s branches through the Bank’s Sharia Auditing Department, and it duly responds to them.

Sharia Auditing

The Shari'a Auditing department is one of the Bank's important supervisory departments, and it follows the work of the Shari'a Supervisory Board appointed by the Bank’s general authority. It is independent from the executive management in performing its work and has the right to view all documents, contracts, agreements, models and policies of the Bank with full support from the Board of Directors, executive management, and the Sharia Supervisory Board in order to achieve the Bank's goals and avoid risks in accordance with the Sharia and approved governance standards.

Main objectives of the Sharia Auditing Department:

• Verifying that the Bank’s management has fulfilled its responsibilities towards implementing the provisions and principles of Islamic Sharia in accordance with the approved Sharia standards.
• Verifying the suitability, adequacy, and effectiveness of the internal Sharia control system.
• Verifying that any activity, product, service, or contract carried out by the Bank is authorized by the Sharia Supervisory Board.
• Achieving the integrative supervisory role with other supervisory departments with the aim of achieving an effective regulatory system.

Tasks of the Sharia Auditing Department:

• Reviewing the instructions and work procedures issued by the Bank’s management in light of the Sharia’s Supervisory Board decisions.
• Preparing for the regular meetings of the Board and following up the implementation of its decisions and recommendations.
• Carrying out field Sharia audit tours on a regular basis and submitting audit reports to the Sharia Supervisory Board.
• Participating with the Board in scientific meetings and seminars and communicating with the public effectively.
• Preparing the Department's business plan annually, revising work instructions and procedures and seeking approval of them by the Sharia Supervisory Board, which in turn evaluates the performance of the Department and its employees within the approved annual plan.

Sharia Supervisory Board Report for the year 2022

Distinguished shareholders,

According to the assignment letter, we have monitored the principles and contracts related to the transactions and applications of PIB during the financial period 01/01/2022 until 31/12/2022.

We have undertaken due diligence to express our opinion on whether the bank has complied with the provisions and principles of Islamic Shari’a as well as with specific fatwas, resolutions and guidelines issued by us.

We have carried out our monitoring, which included examining the bank’s documentation and procedures. We tested each type of operation based on a chosen sample, made observations and verified compliance with the approved Shari’a principles.

We planned and carried out our monitoring in order to obtain all information and interpretations which we considered necessary to provide us with sufficient evidence to give reasonable assurance that the bank has not violated the provisions and principles of Islamic Shari’a.

PIB’s management is responsible for the bank’s conduct of business in line with the provisions and principles of Islamic Shari’a, and the responsibility of the Shari’a Supervisory Board is to form an independent opinion after carrying out an audit and the monitoring work required to present the following report to you:

One: The Supervisory Board reviewed the bank's activities carried out between 01/01/2022 and 31/12/2022.

Two: The Supervisory Board answered all questions and inquiries submitted by the bank’s management during that period.

Three: The Supervisory Board provided some notes and corrections to the transactions, agreements, and business models it reviewed.

Four: The Supervisory Board reviewed and discussed the Shari’a audit reports of branches and offices submitted by the Shari’a Audit Department and provided its recommendations and observations, noting the presence of a number of recurring observations on the financing work in some branches. It stressed the need to avoid the repetition of such observations in the future.

Five: The Supervisory Board approved and reviewed a set of sponsorship and cooperation agreements with various companies and institutions, and approved a set of products, models and contracts, including:

• The Supervisory Board answered all questions and inquiries submitted by the Bank's management during the mentioned period about programs, campaigns and new contracts.
• Approving the 2022 financial statements.
• The mechanism for distributing profits to depositors for the first period in 2022.
• The new 2022 savings campaign.
• "Sixth Edition" of the Wages Bulletin and its amendments.
• Bulletin of the legal adaptation of the world/platinum cards, and all issues related to the application for a platinum and world cards.
• Housing Financing Program in Al-Quds Al-Sharif.
• Approval of the request to reshape the investment pool and pricing of premium deposits.
• Prepaid card product.
• A draft policy for financing products and customer classification, which was put forward by the executive management.
• Approval of the investment application form through the investment certificate.
• The Board reviewed the file of fatwas and Shari’a decisions issued and published on the internal network for employees, so that it is available to all Bank employees to view and rely on, and is updated periodically and continuously.
• The mechanism of transferring the bank’s interests from the MasterCard company in line with the statements sent by the company to the Illegal Gains Fund. It was approved to give the authority to transfer any returns that may be received monthly from the MasterCard company to the Illegal Gains Fund automatically, starting from June 2022. The Board will be provided with a statement of these amounts on a semi-annual basis for duly approval.
• The final version of the prepaid card product.
• A request to issue an investment certificate and related instructions.
• Salam and parallel salam contracts.
• Proposals submitted by the Department of Marketing and Public Relations on diminishing musharaka and the change in rental profit.
• Issuing a decision on the investment in Arkan Company.
• Issuing a decision on the development of the off-plan property sale product.
• Issuing a decision recommending the executive management to address the Islamic insurance companies Takaful and Tamkeen to present special offers to the bank's customers, and give them competitive insurance benefits. This way clients will have no justification for resorting to non-Islamic insurance companies.
• Issuing its annual report on PIB’s 2021 business.
• Approving the Board’s semi-annual 2022 report.
• Approving the department's 2023 annual plan.
• The organizational structure and estimated budget of the Board and Department for 2023.
• An agreement to anchor kafalahs with the Banking Corporation and its financing contracts.
• An agreement to purchase one million shares of Al-Safwa Islamic Bank.
• Memorandum of Understanding signed between the Bank and the Agricultural Credit Fund.
• The Board was briefed on the department's participation in the training of the third batch of the banking qualification program for new employees, through which some Islamic financing formulas approved by the bank were explained.

Six: The Board participated in several meetings, local and international conferences, and workshops with many local institutions. These meetings discussed a number of issues related to Islamic banking and Islamic products approved by PIB.

In our opinion:

• The Supervisory Authority reviewed the contracts submitted and made the necessary amendments. The contracts, operations and transactions carried out by PIB during the period under review were consistent with the provisions and principles of Islamic Sharia.
• All gains emanating from sources or methods prohibited by Islamic Sharia, or in violation of Sharia standards, fatwas and rulings, have been moved to the charity fund to be spent on charitable causes in line with the recommendations of the Sharia Supervisory Board.
• PIB abides by the decisions of the Sharia Supervisory Board and the Higher Sharia Supervisory Board.
• There was no objection to the method adopted by the Board of Directors according to which each shareholder shall pay their zakat themselves. The percentage of zakat due on each share was calculated (5.61% per share), provided the shareholders are notified of this. The Board calls on everyone to pay their zakat themselves in line with Sharia law.

The Sharia Supervisory Board thanks the bank and its shareholders for their trust. It also thanks the bank’s management and employees for their good cooperation. May Allah reward everyone.

Allah shall remain the guide to the right path

Monday 14 Shaaban 1444 AH corresponding to 03/06/2023 AD