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This paper sets out to empirically test the office space choice decision of firms currently occupying offices in Suntec City, Singapore.

Empirical data on office space determinants of occupiers in Suntec City office towers were collected via a mailed questionnaire from March to June 2004. Based on a consolidated sample list of 342 firms, 61 responses from the occupiers, which represent a response rate of 17.8 percent, were received.

Based on the survey results on office space preference of occupiers in Suntec City, the mean score statistics show that image and prestige of an office location and accessibility by public transport are the two most highly ranked factors by the firms.

The selection of Suntec City as a sample case study may help to control the heterogeneity of building factor, but it will also limit the generalization of the findings. However, the results provide support to the deliberate strategies by the management to create a pro‐business environment and also to connect the space through deliberate network effects. The second limitation is the uneven distribution of sample firms by size in the survey.

In many office space choice studies, building and accessibility factors were invariably found to be significant determinants of office location. In this study, non‐location and network connectivity factors were included in the empirical tests, and they were found to be significant in influencing office space decision of selected clusters of firms in a building.

This paper aims to highlight how facilities can enhance the strategic competitive position of a business organisation.

The methods of investigation used in this study include observation, in‐depth interviews and secondary data.

This case study has shown that both hardware, i.e. facilities and software, i.e. business philosophy of the organisation are important to enhance its competitive position.

This study has looked at only one case. Future research may use the same five‐force model to assess and determine the contribution of facilities to the competitive position of a business organisation.

This study hopes to create more awareness among senior management of the strategic importance of facilities to a business's bottom‐line.

Using a strategic management model, this paper illustrates the contribution of facilities management to the broader corporate goals.

Legal and Sharīʿah issues abound in creating security to finance waqf property development in Malaysia, for it involves integrating the Sharīʿah concept of waqf with requirements of Malaysian land law as well as the requirements of modern finance under civil law. Banks and financial insti­tutions will not generally finance property development without any form of security for the loan. The best type of security transaction under Malaysian land law is to create a charge on the land under the National Land Code 1965, rendering the land liable as a security which upon default of the chargor, would entitle the chargee to seek statutory remedies including sale of the land. Such may not be feasible for waqf properties due to the inalienable nature of such properties. Due to the remedy of sale of the land upon default, the same issues would arise in regard to other types of securities like a lien and a loan agreement cum assignment. There is therefore a need to diversify the available options in creating security over waqf property. What are the existing Sharīʿah restrictions on waqf property? Do these restrictions affect the creation of security over waqf lands under conventional Malaysian land law? What are the legal and Sharīʿah issues relating to creating a charge over waqf lands? What are some feasible options? Initial findings are that creating a charge on a lease of waqf land as well as resorting to a hybrid form of a traditional security transaction in Malaysia, called ‘Jualjanji’, may hold some answers. Through doctrinal legal research and content analysis, this chapter explores these issues and recommends feasible solutions.

For Chinese companies that cross-list in Chinese A share and Hong Kong (H share) markets, the H share price has been consistently lower than the A share price by an average of 85% in recent years. This is puzzling because most institutional differences between the two markets have been eliminated since 2007. The purpose of this study is to explain the puzzle of the price difference of A+H companies.

Using all A and H share Chinese firms in the period 2007–2013 and a simultaneous equations approach, this study identifies three new explanations for the recent price difference.

First, utilizing a unique earning quality measure that is directly related to non-persistent components of fair value accounting under International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRS), this study finds that the lower the earnings quality, the lower the H share price relative to the A share price, and hence the greater the price difference. Second, the higher the myopic investor ownership in A share firms, the larger the A share price relative to the H share price. Third, the short-selling mechanism introduced to the A share market since 2010 helps reduce the price difference.

First, this study identifies three new explanations for the puzzle of the AH price difference which remains substantial even after the institutional and accounting standards differences between the two markets were eliminated. Second, we examine the impact of the implementation of fair value accounting under IFRS in an emerging market on the pricing difference of cross-listed shares and reveal that it can induce an unintended negative consequence on the pricing difference of cross-listed shares. Third, this study contributes to the literature on short sales by providing its mitigating role in pricing differences across two different markets. Finally, this study makes improvements in research design, which utilizes a unique measure of earnings quality that is directly related to the implementation of IFRS and a simultaneous equations approach that minimizes endogeneity concern.

This paper aims to analyze the impact of Sharī‘ah compliance perception on customer satisfaction in Islamic banking sector of Pakistan.

Primary data were collected from 242 account holders of Islamic banks and Islamic banking branches of conventional commercial banks and analyzed by correlation and regression through self-administered questionnaires based on SERVQUAL model.

Significant moderating effects of Sharī‘ah compliance perception on the relation between service quality and customer satisfaction have been identified.

As a cross-sectional study with convenience sampling restricts generalizability and because financial benefits offered by banks were not included as a variable, the scope of this study is limited to service quality only. Future research may focus on the moderating effect of Sharī‘ah compliance perception through longitudinal study with larger sample size in a multi-cultural environment.

Results of this paper recommend Islamic banks to focus on their core strength “Sharī‘ah compliance” while developing their product/service and building marketing strategies. Moreover, assurance of high-quality services will sustain such strategies against competition with conventional banks.

Islamic banks must primarily develop their brand through extensive communication and public awareness programs regarding Sharī‘ah compliance standards in terms of products/services, policy/procedures, code of conduct and Sharī‘ah board.

This research examines moderating role of Sharī‘ah compliance perception between service quality and customer satisfaction in Islamic banking sector of an Islamic Republic with dual banking system. This interactive effect of Sharī‘ah compliance perception has not been found as an overriding theme in any of the main stream journals/articles. Therefore, this study fills this gap.

This chapter assesses the effects of corporate governance (CG) variables on the level of Corporate Social Responsibility Disclosure (CSRD), Shari'ah Supervisory Board Disclosure (SSBD), and Financial Disclosure (FD) for Islamic banks. This study, based on a sample of 95 Islamic banks, assessed this in 2013. The findings suggest that CG mechanisms, firm's age, auditor and shari'ah auditing department are effective in influencing SSBD, CSRD, and FD practices in Islamic banks. This chapter encourages regulators to improve CG mechanisms in their Islamic banking systems through the optimization of ownership structure (dispersed ownership) and the board's characteristics in order to promote transparency and disclosure. Moreover, the findings support theoretical arguments that firms disclose CG information in order to mitigate information asymmetry and agency costs and to improve investor confidence in the reported financial statements. The empirical evidence of this study enhances the understanding of the CG disclosure environment in Islamic banks as a promoting new financial system.

This study aims to critically examine the pricing of Islamic financial assets (Sharīʿah-compliant assets, Sharīʿah-compliant securities, Sharīʿah-compliant financing and Sukuk) in the three South-East Asia countries such as Malaysia, Indonesia and Brunei to provide necessary information to the policymakers and Islamic finance investors for making a sound decision.

This study used secondary data and used the nonlinear autoregressive distributed lags (NARDL) model to estimate the reaction of Islamic financial assets in South-East Asia towards price changes. Wald-test was used to diagnose the final model.

The result of this study shows that the majority of Islamic financial assets in the three South-East Asia countries exhibit positive and negative long-run effects. The findings reveal a long-run asymmetric relationship that supports rockets and feathers effects. The indication is that Islamic financial assets pricing deviates from weak form EMH. Pricing of Islamic financial assets reveals unfair pricing.

Price adjustment of Islamic financial assets requires urgent attention of policymakers to prevent Sharīʿah non-compliant risk. Therefore, the Shariah advisory board in those countries, Accounting and Auditing Organization for Islamic Financial Institutions and Islamic Financial Services Board are hereby advised to act on the factors that might enable rockets and feathers effects on the pricing of Islamic financial assets, as the long-run asymmetric relationship is established.

This study is novel as it critically and simultaneously examines the pricing behaviour of Islamic financial assets in the three South-East Asian countries. The findings from the study provide vital information on the pricing behaviour of Islamic financial assets to the policymakers and investors.

This study aims to examine the changes in equity guidelines and initial returns in the Malaysian initial public offering (IPO) market.

The study uses cross-sectional data over 16 years from 2000 to 2016. It uses ordinary least squares for the baseline model and incorporates an interaction term, quantile regression, quadratic term, break test and logit regression model for further analysis.

The results support the propositions that lockup provisions signal commitment and demand increase initial returns. The revision in the Bumiputera equity requirement means that issuers no longer need to discount offer prices to entice investors. Finally, the revised Sharīʿah-compliance screening requirement ensures that stocks are better in quality and more transparent, leading to a higher demand that drives prices upwards.

This study’s findings provide insights into how issuers can secure good subscriptions. Besides, policymakers should ensure that firms disclose the required information in their prospectuses.

This study adds to the body of knowledge on whether and how the regulatory requirements affect IPO initial returns.

This paper aims to conduct a detailed analysis of the feasibility of issuing sukuk in China and examine the regulatory issues related to the issuance of sukuk in China.

This study uses SWOT analysis to explore China’s internal and external environments related to the issuance of sukuks and examines the application of sukuks as an alternative financing instrument in China.

As a unique financial instrument, a sukuk can assist in meeting China’s current financing needs. Moreover, it is feasible to issue a sukuk. China should be prepared to modify its legal system and set up a regulatory framework conducive to the issuance of sukuks. Furthermore, blockchain technology can be used to overcome certain limitations of sukuks.

This study provides a detailed analysis of sukuk issuances in China. This study discusses the issue of sukuk issuance in China from the perspective of finance and law.

The purpose of this paper is to develop and test a theoretical model of the determinants of Islamic banks' social disclosures. In testing the hypotheses, the level of social disclosure in Islamic banks' annual reports is gauged based on a benchmark derived from Islamic principles.

Applying the principles of systems‐oriented theories such as political economy, legitimacy and stakeholder theories, as well as agency theory, hypotheses linking Islamic social disclosure and its determinants are developed. The sample comprised 47 Islamic banks in 14 countries and the data related to the dependent (Islamic banks social disclosures) variable are collected mainly from the annual reports, while data for the independent variables (determinants) are collected from various sources. Regression analysis was conducted to test the hypotheses.

Corporate social responsibility (CSR) disclosure by Islamic banks varies significantly across the sample. According to the regression results, variation is best explained by the “influence of the relevant publics” and the “Shari'ah (SSB supervisory boards) corporate governance mechanism” variables. Using alternative variable measures, the regression results suggest that “level of social and political freedom” and “the proportion of investment account deposits to total assets” are also significant determinants of Islamic banks' CSR disclosure.

The major limitation of this paper is the small sample size of only 47 Islamic banking institutions. Future studies may expand the sample size used here.

The results indicate the significance of the SSB as a governance mechanism that may increase the CSR disclosure of Islamic banks. Thus, from a policy perspective, bodies that regulate Islamic banking should consider mandating the SSB for all “Islamic banks”.

This research is the first to provide an a priori basis for CSR disclosure of Islamic banks and to test using empirical data. The findings of this research should be of significant value to regulators, shareholders and deposit holders of Islamic banks. In a more general context, this paper is one of a few that has operationalised Gray et al.'s conception of “levels of resolution of perception” and empirically tested the concept using non‐traditional organisations (Islamic banks) in a non‐Western context. This adds further credibility to systems‐oriented theories in explaining CSR disclosures of non‐Western organisations operating in non‐Western cultures.