Roundtable on Muslims, Trust and Cultural Dialogue: Business and Finance

Thu, 14 Feb 2013 19:00 in Discussion Forums

Tags:

Where: Dialogue Society, 402 Holloway Road, London N7 6PZ
Date: 14th February 2013
Time: 19:00

Speakers:

Mohammed Amin, Conservative Muslim Forum and Formerly tax partner in PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP
Waheed Qaiser, President and Vice Chairman, Maxim Corporate LLP

Abstract

The Muslims, Trust and Cultural Dialogue is an international collaborative research project funded by the Research Councils UK that analyses the conditions of trust and mistrust in three overlapping areas of modern life: politics and society; business and finance; and art and culture. It aims to bring together an international multidisciplinary network of scholars, practitioners and stakeholders exploring questions of trust in the relationship between Muslim diaspora populations in the West and the societies around them. The project is committed to understanding how existing practices in these three arenas enact dialogue and negotiation between groups in ways that can be mutually informative, and which help us move beyond misunderstanding and negative stereotyping.

The first Roundtable is part of a series of events on how existing practices in a variety of cultural areas – business and finance, politics and society, culture and the arts -engage with the vexed question of trust between Muslims and other communities. At a time when multiculturalism has been fiercely criticised – not least for its assumed tolerance of the alleged self-segregation of certain sectors of the Muslim community in Britain – questions of what constitutes intercultural trust and how it may be fostered have a pressing urgency.

Biography of Mohammed Amin

Mohammed Amin has on several occasions been listed as one of the hundred most influential Muslims in the UK. Amin graduated in mathematics from Clare College, Cambridge and obtained a Post Graduate Certificate in Education from Leeds University. In 1978 he qualified as a chartered tax advisor being awarded an examination distinction. In 1995 he became an associate member of the Association of Corporate Treasurers. His Chartered Institute of Taxation fellowship thesis was awarded a medal for the best thesis submitted in 1999.

For 33 years Amin practiced as a tax advisor, most recently spending 19 years as a tax partner in Price Waterhouse, now PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP. He was the first Muslim to be admitted to the Price Waterhouse partnership in the UK. He specialised in international tax and the taxation of derivatives and foreign exchange, and for four years he led the firm’s UK finance and treasury tax network. Most recently before his retirement at the end of 2009, Amin was PwC’s head of Islamic finance in the UK and a member of PwC’s four person Global Islamic Finance Leadership Team. He has presented on Islamic finance around the world as well as advising the UK Government. From 2003 until he retired, Amin was an elected member of PwC’s 15 person Supervisory Board, responsible for overseeing the firm’s management and approving its accounts and all partnership admissions and withdrawals. In retirement, as well as Islamic finance consulting and writing, Amin spends most of his time “giving back” to the community by writing, speaking, informal mentoring and active involvement in a number of organisations.

Biography of Waheed Qaiser

Waheed Qaiser is the President and vice Chairman of the Maxim Corporate Finance LLP. Waheed held executive management positions at Citibank, HSBC, UBS, IIBU, IBB, QCC and Maxim corporate finance LLP. Waheed is a Professional Banker & Management Professional, having led Operations, Retail/Private banking, Business development, sales & marketing, Islamic banking. Waheed has proven expertise on bank start-up, management & financial consulting and Corporate Finance advisory.

WQ is a founding member of the Bank of England working party on Islamic mortgages that brought the historical amendment on double stamp duty for Islamic mortgages and a founding Member UK technical group at Chartered Institute for Securities & Investments for Islamic Finance Qualification (IFQ) London. WQ co-authored a book on Islamic retail Banking & Finance.