In the middle of coronavirus pandemic and the policy of working and learning from home, School of Business and Management ITB that is represented by the dean of SBM ITB, Prof.Dr.Ir. Sudarso Kaderi Wiryono DEA has signed the agreement of cooperation with Komite Nasional Ekonomi dan Keuangan Syariah (KNEKS) that is represented by Mr. Sutan Emir Hidayat as the director of Education and Research of National Committee of Islamic Economy and Finance, Indonesia. The signature ceremonial occurs simultaneously after the Guest Lecture session of the Financial Management Course from Mr. Sutan. The topic is Strategic initiatives for the development of the Islamic economy and finance in Indonesia. 

The cooperation between SBM ITB and KNEKS is part of strategic initiatives for nurturing the human resources of the Islamic economy and finance in Indonesia. Due to the huge potential of the Halal economy to Indonesian GDP up to USD 3.8 milliard and it is predicted to grow up to 5.3%  in 2025 from the recent total Indonesian halal economy at USD 218.8 Milliard. This cooperation also launching the Center of Islamic Economy and Finance (CIEF) in SBM ITB. The CIEF will have two main divisions, there are Islamic finance studies and Islamic business studies. Islamic finance studies will accelerate the Islamic finance ecosystem and infrastructure, provide the prominent human resource for developing and optimizing the Islamic finance impact on national economic growth. Then the Islamic business studies will nurture and develop the halal product and service, provide useful insight for Islamic business owners from small and medium enterprises to well-established companies. discover new opportunities and improvement suggestions to prospective stakeholders.