Pakistan’s capital market regulator has drafted governance rules that cover sharia-compliant companies and securities, the latest government initiative aimed at developing the country’s Islamic finance industry.
The move by the Securities and Exchange Commission of Pakistan (SECP) marks the first time a regulator has defined comprehensive requirements for companies that deem themselves to be compliant with Islamic principles.
Regulators across Asia and the Middle East, such as Malaysia and Bahrain, have typically focused their attention on Islamic banks, insurance firms and their financial products, but rarely ventured into corporations.
The rules represent a “quantum leap forward in cementing Islamic financial services, sharia-compliant businesses and instruments,” the regulator said.
Areas covered include certification of companies and securities, screening criteria and disclosure requirements.
The proposed rules, which are now open to public consultation, would help bring standardization and transparency in the practices of sharia-compliant businesses, the SECP said adding stakeholders have the opportunity to share their comments and suggestions within two weeks.
The absence of a regulator-imposed governance framework has resulted in concerns raised around the adherence level of companies that claim to be Islamic, said Syed Abubakr, sharia board member of Emaan Islamic Banking, a unit of Silk Bank.
“The draft regulations bring clarity on many of the issues which used to be considered grey areas and were subject of hot debate.”
Such concerns have been raised in markets, including the United Arab Emirates, where a firm has claimed its debt no longer complies with Islamic principles.
Public confidence on sharia-compliant companies could increase because of the SECP rules, while also supporting industry training and academic programs, Abubakr added.
Pakistan’s Islamic banking sector has seen moderate growth, it accounts for 13.7 percent of the country’s total banking deposits as of September, up from 13.3 percent a year earlier.
Last month, the SECP adopted three sharia standards from the Bahrain-based Accounting and Auditing Organization for Islamic Financial Institutions (AAOIFI), a global standard-setting body.
In November, it approved a proposal for a sharia-compliant trading counter at the Pakistan Stock Exchange, as well as regulations covering sharia advisers.
Pakistan drafts governance rules for Islamic firms, securities
Pakistan drafts governance rules for Islamic firms, securities
‘The age of electricity’: WEF panel says geopolitics is redefining global energy security
- Surging demand, critical minerals, US-China rivalry reshaping energy security as nations compete for influence, infrastructure, control over world’s energy future
LONDON: Electricity is rapidly replacing oil as the world’s most strategic energy commodity, and nations are racing to secure reliable supply and influence in a changing energy landscape.
Global electricity demand is growing nearly three times faster than overall energy consumption, driven by artificial intelligence, electric vehicles, and rising use of air-conditioning in a warming world.
“We are entering the age of electricity,” said Fatih Birol, the executive director of the International Energy Agency, during a panel discussion titled “Who is Winning on Energy Security?” at the World Economic Forum in Davos on Tuesday.
Unlike oil, electricity cannot be stockpiled at scale, forcing governments and companies to prioritize generation, transmission, and storage, making regions with stable infrastructure increasingly important on the global stage.
US-China rivalry
Energy security is increasingly about control and influence, not just supply. The rivalry between the US and China now extends beyond oil to critical minerals, energy infrastructure, and long-term energy partnerships.
“The contrast between the US approach and China’s is stark,” said Meghan O’Sullivan, director of Harvard University’s Belfer Center. “The US, until recently, focused on access, not control. China flips that, seeking long-term influence and making producers more dependent on them.”
O’Sullivan highlighted China’s Belt and Road Initiative, which invests in energy infrastructure and critical minerals across Africa, Latin America, and Asia to secure influence over production and supply chains.
“It’s not just the desire to control oil production itself, but to control who develops resources,” she said, citing Venezuela as an example. The South American nation holds some of the world’s largest crude oil reserves, giving it outsized geopolitical importance. Recent US moves to expand influence over Venezuelan oil flows illustrate the broader trend that great powers are competing to shape who benefits from energy resources, not just the resources themselves.
“There’s no question that the intensified geopolitical competition between great powers is playing out in more competition for energy resources, particularly as the energy system becomes more complex,” O’Sullivan added.
Global drivers of the electricity era
The rise of electricity as a strategic commodity is also transforming global supply chains. Copper, lithium, and other minerals have become essential to modern energy systems.
“A new ‘energy commodity’ is copper,” said Mike Henry, CEO of BHP. “Electricity demand is growing three times faster than primary energy, and copper is essential for wires, data centers, and renewable energy. We expect a near doubling, about a 70 percent increase in copper demand over 25 years.”
Yet deposits are harder to access, refining is concentrated in a few countries, and supply chains are politically exposed.
“The world’s ability to generate electricity reliably will increasingly depend on materials and infrastructure outside traditional oil and gas markets,” Birol said.
AI and digital technologies amplify the challenge with large-scale data centers consuming enormous amounts of electricity.
The Middle East’s strategic relevance
While the global focus is on electricity demand and great-power rivalry, the Middle East illustrates how traditional energy hubs are adapting.
Majid Jafar, the CEO of Crescent Petroleum, highlighted the region’s enduring advantages: abundant reserves, low-carbon potential, and strategic geography.
“Geopolitical instability reinforces, if anything, the Middle East’s role as a supplier with scale, affordability, availability, and some of the lowest carbon reserves,” he said.
Jafar emphasized the region’s ability to navigate the growing US-China rivalry.
“Amid US-China global friction, the Middle East has managed to remain on good terms with both sides,” he said, noting that flexible policy and engagement help preserve influence while balancing competing interests.
The region is also adapting to the electricity-driven era. AI data centers and digital technologies are multiplying power needs. Jafar said: “One minute of video consumes roughly an hour’s electricity for an average Western household. Multiply that across millions of servers and billions of people and the scale is staggering.”
Infrastructure investments further strengthen the Middle East’s strategic position. In the Kurdistan Region of Iraq, the Runaki Project has expanded natural gas–fueled power plants to provide 24/7 electricity to millions of residents and businesses, reducing reliance on diesel generators and supporting economic growth.
According to Jafar, the combination of energy resources, capital, leadership, and agile policymaking gives the Middle East a competitive edge in meeting global electricity demand and navigating the complex geopolitics of energy.
While the panel highlighted the Middle East as one example, in the age of electricity, energy security is defined as much by influence and infrastructure as by barrels of oil, with the US-China rivalry determining who gains and who is left behind.
