Midkhat Shagiakhmetov spoke at the 20th Annual Conference on Islamic Banking and Finance in Bahrain
Deputy Prime Minister of the Republic of Tatarstan, Minister of Economy of the Republic of Tatarstan Midkhat Rafkatovich Shagiakhmetov delivered a welcoming speech at the opening of the 20th Annual Conference on Islamic Banking and Finance, held in Manama (Kingdom of Bahrain).
The conference is dedicated to the topic "Artificial Intelligence and the transformation of Islamic Finance." It discusses how digital technologies, in particular AI, can accelerate the growth of partner financing, increase the availability of products and strengthen compliance with Sharia principles.
In his speech, Midkhat Shagiakhmetov noted: "Participation in the annual AAOIFI conference is becoming a good tradition for us and is the basis for building strong partnerships. The Russian Federation and the Islamic States have traditionally had close, trusting relations, both bilaterally and through cooperation with the Organization of Islamic Cooperation, headed by the Head of the Republic of Tatarstan Rustam Nurgalievich Minnikhanov." He recalled that the Republic of Tatarstan is one of the Russian pilot regions for the introduction of Islamic finance principles: "Thanks to the adoption of Federal Law No. 417, the legal framework for the establishment of Islamic finance in Russia and their integration with international standards has been formed."
In addition, in his speech, Midkhat Shagiakhmetov noted the importance of the development of artificial intelligence in Russia and Tatarstan. He stressed that the country is implementing a national AI strategy until 2030, and the republic has its own projects — the GosPrompt platform, Tatneft and Innopolis solutions, as well as Halal Card and RANKS systems that use AI to increase transparency in Islamic finance.
A separate topic of the presentation was the creation of the AAOIFI Representative Center in Kazan. The Minister stressed that this decision opens up new opportunities for integrating the Russian market with the international system of Islamic finance, training certified specialists and developing national standards based on international approaches.
During the forum's plenary session, the following speakers reviewed the global growth of Islamic banking, the integration of digital platforms and regulatory documents with international standards: Sheikh Ibrahim bin Khalifa Al Khalifa, Chairman of the AAOIFI Board of Trustees, and Omar Mustafa, Acting Director General of the Islamic Development Bank Institute, and Omar Mustafa, Secretary General of AAOIFI. The practices of the countries of the Middle East and Asia on the issue of sukuk, the introduction of smart contracts and the scale of application of artificial intelligence in the financial sector were discussed.