Navigating DeFi, Tokenisation and Cross-Border Capital via Labuan IBFC, Malaysia
About the Webinar
As capital markets evolve, the convergence of decentralised finance (DeFi), tokenisation, and digital assets is reshaping how capital is raised, structured, and deployed across borders. Meanwhile, businesses and investors continue to navigate increasing regulatory fragmentation, geopolitical uncertainty, and operational complexity in cross-border expansion.
Against this backdrop, Labuan IBFC reintroduces its webinar series, reinforcing its position as a forward-looking international financial centre in Asia, offering a well-regulated and flexible platform for digital financial services, cross-border structuring, and innovative capital market solutions across digital and Shariah-compliant avenues.
This webinar explores how Labuan IBFC can serve as a strategic jurisdiction for companies, investors, and advisers in the next wave of capital market innovation, particularly in the tokenisation of real-world assets and digital financial structures.
The session convenes industry experts, investors, and advisers to share practical insights on digital finance, tokenisation, and cross-border capital, highlighting Labuan IBFC’s expanding digital financial ecosystem and its influence on global capital flows.
Join us to explore the intersection of DeFi, tokenisation, and cross-border capital, and how Labuan IBFC enables next-generation financial structures across Asia and beyond.
Key Discussions
- The evolution of capital markets, from traditional finance to DeFi and tokenisation
- Overview of Labuan IBFC’s digital financial ecosystem and regulatory framework for digital assets and security tokens
- Tokenisation of real-world assets: emerging trends and practical applications
- Digital financial services and structuring frameworks supporting cross-border investment activities
- Comparative jurisdiction insights, including developments in the UAE and other international financial hubs
Speakers
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Dr. Farrukh Habib, Founder & CEO of Azka Advisors (UK) and Co-founder of Alif Technologies (Dubai)
Dr. Farrukh Habib, Founder & CEO of Azka Advisors (UK) and Co-founder of Alif Technologies (Dubai)
Dr. Farrukh Habib is a Shariah scholar and fintech expert with over 13 years of global experience. As the founder & CEO of Azka Advisors (United Kingdom) and co-founder of Alif Technologies (Dubai), he focuses on Islamic fintech and the halal digital economy, including artificial intelligence, blockchain, tokenisation, DeFi and Shariah governance. He is currently involved in various fintech projects as an advisor, mentor or core team member.
Previously, Dr. Habib was a researcher and advisor at the International Shari'ah Research Academy (ISRA), a distinguished Islamic finance research institute under the Central Bank of Malaysia. In this role, he contributed to several projects, research, corporate training, executive workshops, and consultation work on Islamic finance, capital markets, sukuk, takaful, and banking.
Dr. Habib holds a Ph.D. in Islamic Finance from the International Center for Education in Islamic Finance (INCEIF) University, Malaysia, a Master of Science degree in Banking and Finance from Queen Mary University of London, United Kingdom, and both Bachelor’s and Master's degrees in Economics from the University of Karachi, Pakistan. He also graduated from an extensive 8-year course in traditional Islamic sciences, covering jurisprudence (Islamic Fiqh), prophetic traditions (Hadith & Sunnah), and Quranic sciences (Tafsir) from Wafaq Ul Madaris Al-Arabia, Pakistan. He also has authorisation (Ijazah) to teach Hadith from renowned scholars from Pakistan and completed memorisation of the Holy Quran at an early age. -
Harpreet Singh Maan, Founding Member, Malaysia Digital Consortium and CEO & Co Founder of TEIZA
Harpreet Singh Maan, Founding Member, Malaysia Digital Consortium and CEO & Co Founder of TEIZA
Harpreet Singh Maan is a Blockchain Developer turned Entrepreneur, Trainer, Angel Investor, and Market Thought Leader. He is also the CEO & Co-founder of TEIZA, President of ACCESS Blockchain Association Malaysia, and an ISO National Committee Member on Blockchain & DLT standards. He has been instrumental in shaping Malaysia’s blockchain and digital economy policy and currently spearheading the Malaysia Digital Consortium (MYDC), a national initiative to unify the country’s digital infrastructure ecosystem. -
Hillay Janebdar, Partner and Head of Virtual Assets Practice, KARM Legal, UAE
Hillay Janebdar, Partner and Head of Virtual Assets Practice, KARM Legal, UAE
Hillay Janebdar is a Partner at KARM Legal, where she leads the firm’s Virtual Assets practice. A commercially focused Solicitor of England & Wales with over 10 years’ post-qualification experience, she has advised across multiple jurisdictions, including the UK, the UAE (including the Abu Dhabi Global Market), and the British Virgin Islands.
Hillay brings together the technical rigour of private practice with a pragmatic, solutions-driven approach shaped by senior in-house roles. Her expertise spans corporate and commercial law, fintech, femtech, crypto, and payments regulation. She has extensive experience structuring, negotiating, and managing complex commercial arrangements, including SaaS agreements, joint ventures, procurement and vendor contracts, affiliate partnerships, and M&A transactions, with a strong emphasis on aligning legal frameworks to commercial strategy and long-term growth.
With deep cross-border regulatory insight, Hillay advises businesses on licensing, compliance, AML and sanctions, data protection, and regulatory investigations. She is particularly recognised for translating complex regulatory requirements into clear, actionable guidance for boards, executive teams, and investors, supporting confident decision-making in rapidly evolving sectors.
In her role leading the Virtual Assets practice, Hillay works closely with digital asset businesses, blockchain innovators, and financial institutions to launch and scale technology-driven platforms while maintaining constructive regulatory engagement. Her work is underpinned by a strong focus on governance, risk management, and sustainable growth within innovation-led markets.
Hillay’s broader interests include legal innovation, sustainable finance, and blockchain governance. She is committed to advancing responsible business practices and improving access to justice, particularly in emerging markets where technology and regulation intersect. -
Ja'afar Rihan, Head of Islamic Market Development, Labuan FSA
Ja'afar Rihan, Head of Islamic Market Development, Labuan FSA
Ja’afar Rihan currently heads the Islamic Finance section of Labuan Financial Services Authority. Prior to this, he served as the Head of Business Development at Co-opbank Pertama Malaysia Berhad.
He was formerly General Manager of the Simpanan Shariah Department (the world’s first Shariah-compliant pension fund) at the Employees Provident Fund from 2008 to 2018. Earlier in his career, he served as a Vice-President at Calyon Bank.
Mr. Rihan also spent 15 years at Bank Negara Malaysia (BNM), where he made significant contributions to the development of the Islamic money market and Islamic financial market. His final role at BNM was as the Manager of the Islamic Money Market and Investment Operations and Financial departments.
