Shari???ah compliant capacity for fine art

XL Group announced that it has further extended its support for specialist Shari’ah compliant managing general agency, Cobalt Underwriting, by adding fine art and specie coverage to its suite of products. In practice this means financial institutions and collectors can now buy cover with significant limits for a range of assets and their exposures, including gold and other valuable assets both in situ and transit.

Graham Hawkins, global chief underwriting officer, Fine Art & Specie at XL Group, said: “What we are aiming to do here is offer a suite of Shari’ah compliant products that gives clients, who want to buy in this manner, the ability to protect all their assets and risks with no gaps in cover.”

Hawkins continued: “There are huge opportunities to provide Shari’ah compliant Fine Art & Specie products; financial institutions, investors and collectors are diversifying their portfolios, often with a preference for physical assets such as precious metals, jewellery and art. Additionally, we are seeing a growth in the arts market in the Middle East and Asia with the opening of new galleries. These galleries now have the option to buy in a Shari’ah compliant manner.”