, respectively 1. as at end june 2015, total sukuk or islamic bond outstanding stood at usd313 billion with malaysia making up 55 % or usd172 billion of total market share 2. source : ifsb 3q2014. source : bloomberg, zawya. bis central bankers ’ speeches the increased participation of non - muslim jurisdictions also reflects the positive acceptance of islamic finance among the global community. sukuk has drawn strong interests as an attractive source of funding and a new asset class. uk, hong kong, luxembourg and south africa issued sovereign sukuk last year. with this leadership taken by the british government, uk became the first non - muslim country to issue sovereign sukuk of gbp200 million that attracted strong demand of more than 10 times. hong kong issued the second sovereign sukuk in 2015 following its successful inaugural issuance. the sovereign issuances are hoped to pave the way for corporate sukuk issuances particularly from these jurisdictions. another landmark transaction is the syndicated islamic financing facilities of gbp467 million for the battersea power station phase 3 project in london. the involvement of our malaysian players in some of these global transactions has encouraged cross - border business transactions and enhanced collaboration with players in other jurisdictions. despite the above, sukuk recorded a lower amount of new issuances of usd40 billion during the first half of 2015 due to a slowdown in the current global financial markets and still - low oil prices. malaysia remained the key jurisdiction for sukuk origination with issuances of usd19. 8 billion or 50 % of total market share. malaysia has evolved into a multicurrency sukuk issuance marketplace with issuances in us dollar, chinese renminbi, singapore dollar and japanese yen. our banks, islamic fund management companies and professional service providers, some of whom are with us today, have global capabilities and expertise in advising and managing cross - border financing and investments. the diverse range of institutional investors creates a strong demand for sukuk that efficiently channel funds and liquidity in the market. tesco, a uk - based company, opted for sukuk issuance rather than bond under its conventional and islamic mtn program due to the cost effectiveness of issuing the former. we welcome sukuk issuances by other foreign entities, leveraging on malaysia ’ s expertise and framework. new development in malaysia malaysia has promulgated the new islamic financial services act or

. the competency framework will provide the foundation to guide ibbm in designing and offering relevant management and technical programmes to meet the current and future needs of the banking industry. in addition, the framework would assist academic institutions in aligning their curriculum to meet the industry's needs and to ensure a steady supply of graduates in new growth areas. competency standards set for certification programmes could also serve as a basis for evaluating and accrediting training providers to ensure the provision of top quality training. for the banking workforce, the framework provides a platform for self - assessment to be aware of their competency gaps, and to engage in continuous learning so as to further their careers and keep in tandem with the new demands. the quality of human capital will increasingly become the cutting edge of competitiveness. having competent staff to deliver high quality products and services is critical to building customer confidence and goodwill, driving customer satisfaction, enhancing reputation, and ultimately realising your corporate vision and strategic goals. it is therefore, in the banking institutions'interests to ensure that the competence and professionalism of staff in their industry is further strengthened. the success in developing a robust industry competency framework requires collaborative endeavours among all the parties involved, based on a common vision of an industry which embraces the values of continuous learning and development. the industry competency framework is being developed through a participatory process involving strategic insights and feedback from industry leaders in the country and the region. detailed work is already underway, following the executive interviews which you have participated. your continued strong support, commitment and contributions will be instrumental in ensuring the success of the industry competency framework. with rapid changes taking place in the financial landscape, we need a new generation of professional bankers who are more customer - centric, technology - savvy, more highly qualified, flexible and agile with skill sets that are now more comprehensive than previously. as we prepare ourselves for a more challenging environment, the need to build a competent human capital base with high integrity, right attitudes and work ethics, as well as to maintain a learning environment could not be overemphasised. in realising the goals of a progressive and dynamic financial sector, greater efforts must be directed to building human intellectual capital in a continuous cycle of competency development and enhancement. let me conclude on this note and wish you a most productive discussion session. thank you.