Kuwait Finance House - Bahrain (KFH-Bahrain) has announced that it is a Gold Strategic Partner and Gala Dinner Host of the 17th Annual World Islamic Banking Conference (WIBC 2010) which is currently being held at the Gulf Hotel, Kingdom of Bahrain. More than 1,200 industry leaders, senior decision-makers and key regulators from over 50 countries are gathering at the 17th Annual World Islamic Banking Conference (WIBC 2010). The theme for this year's WIBC, "Building a new growth paradigm - Islamic banking and the new global financial landscape", aims to reflect the future outlook that leading Islamic finance institutions are now adopting as they seek to successfully compete in the new business environment. Discussions at the WIBC 2010 emphasize strategies for ensuring a healthy recovery and rebuilding sustainable growth trajectories for the Islamic finance industry in the new global financial landscape. For almost 2 decades the WIBC has firmly established itself as the largest gathering of Islamic finance leaders in the world and has firmly positioned its pivotal role as the platform where the future of the industry is shaped. Mr. Abdulhakeem Alkhayyat, Managing Director and CEO of KFH-Bahrain, commented "As a Gold Strategic Partner and Gala Dinner Host of the 17th annual World Islamic Banking Conference, KFH-Bahrain expresses its continued commitment by supporting such important occasions. The WIBC aims to further develop and strengthen the Islamic finance industry by making it competitive and a preferred choice for clients worldwide. The WIBC has emerged as a global forum for communicating the values of Islamic banking to a wider audience". "As the demand for Shari'a compliant banking continues to grow, financial institutions need to ensure that they are well positioned to address the issues currently facing the industry before they take steps to increase their market share. The WIBC provides industry professionals and leaders with the opportunity to gain greater insights into emerging trends in the Islamic finance sector and also to identify new avenues for growth and expansion", he added. This year's conference features a host of new and value-added highlights that set it apart from all other conferences, including the launch of the 7th edition of the WIBC McKinsey Competitiveness Report, the world's only original research into the performance and key trends of Islamic banking worldwide.