Once again it has been a busy month for travel. This time, with a concentration on North Asia. China and Japan in particular. Both countries represent significant contrasts in their development of Islamic finance.

For China, it is still very early days. While development continues at a regional bank for the operation of an Islamic window, the further the journey continues, the more it is realized of how much more needs to be done at a national level to ensure the success of the venture. In particular, the leveling of the playing field with regard to tax and stamp duty legislation, the creation of an Islamic money market to ensure the supply of adequate Shariah compliant funds to sustain liquidity, and the need for training and education availability in Chinese language.

That said, there is now a growing understanding of Islamic finance and the opportunities that it will present for the development of the Chinese economy, both internally and externally. For me, this is the key. “Islamic finance is good for business” and is not just there for the benefit of the Muslim population. It is there for all to enjoy, and once these initial hurdles of perception are overcome, then the economic powerhouse that is China will start to enjoy the benefit of Islamic finance.

There is no doubt that there is considerable interest in the GCC in looking east, and all it will take is a few transactions to develop the understanding and the opportunity. In the meantime, efforts are being made to widen and deepen the understanding of Islamic finance in China, which I am confident will result in the growth that we all wish for.

In Japan, we continue to see the development of understanding of Islamic finance among the largest financial institutions. Many are starting to revisit their pre-crisis strategies that were starting to embrace Islamic finance operations and to develop products, sources of funding and Islamic finance development beyond the shores of Japan.

While there has been some legislative change in Japan to enhance the opportunity for Islamic finance to grow onshore, there has been little movement so far. The key developments appear to be in the offshore arena, where a growing sense of realism with regard to the eastward shift of economic power appears to be getting a good grip. A number of institutions I visited are taking into account the rise and development of Islamic finance as part of their transformation strategies.

In both countries, there still remains concern regarding the news from the GCC of further Sukuk defaults. Until the details are unraveled, and concerted action is taken to explain the issues and take necessary corrective measures, there will continue to be concern in every part of the world.

As I explained to my friends and clients in China and Japan, these are part of the growing pains and something that we need to live and work through. There is no doubt in my mind that we have both the momentum and the intellectual capability to make corrections and adjustments which will be to the benefit of all.

As usual, there is much to do and not a moment to lose.