REQUEST FOR EXPRESSIONS OF INTEREST (CONSULTANT SERVICES – SELECTION OF FIRMS) Entity:Islamic Financial Services Board (IFSB) Project Name:Islamic Finance Legal Framework Guidelines and Database Project Sector:Islamic Banking and Finance Mode of Financing:Islamic Finance Grant Financing No:ZZZ2852 The Islamic Development Bank Institute (IsDBI) has approved a grant for Islamic Financial Services Board (IFSB) to establish a comprehensive global database and an interactive digital platform for Islamic finance legislations, providing centralized access to relevant legal texts, comparative legal analysis, and guidance to support harmonization efforts across jurisdictions. Additionally, the project aims to develop a principle-based legal framework that facilitates the adaptation of national laws and regulations to the specificities of Islamic finance, based on sound legal reasoning and best practices. The main objective of the assignment is to design, develop, deploy, and operationalize a secure, scalable, and AI-enabled Islamic Finance Legislation Database (IFLD) platform that enables the Islamic Financial Services Board (IFSB) to manage, review, classify, search, retrieve, compare, and disseminate Islamic finance-related legal and regulatory materials across jurisdictions. To achieve this, the project focuses on delivering a web-based legislation database and law library equipped with content management, document ingestion, version control, and role-based access controls. It integrates AI-assisted workflows for text extraction, semantic search, and automated tagging using IFSB's approved taxonomy, backed by essential human-in-the-loop maker-checker controls for expert validation. Finally, the scope encompasses full testing, deployment in an agreed hosting environment, and comprehensive documentation, training, and post-implementation support to ensure IFSB can independently operate and maintain the platform. The project comprises six key components: conducting inception activities, requirements validation, and solution architecture design; developing the core web-based platform with content management and security features; implementing AI-enabled document processing, OCR, semantic search, and taxonomy tagging; establishing human-in-the-loop review workflows with maker-checker controls for expert validation; executing comprehensive testing, deployment, and operationalization; and delivering technical documentation, user training, and knowledge transfer to support long-term maintenance by IFSB. The draft Terms of Reference (ToR) for the assignment is attached toAnnex-1. IsDBI now invites eligible international consulting firms (“Consultants”) to indicate their interest in providing the listed services in the draft ToR. Interested Consultants must provide specific information that demonstrates that they are fully qualified to perform the services (availability of appropriate experience and skillful staff confirmed by brochures, description of similar assignments in analogous conditions, etc.) including expertise in LegalTech/RegTech, software engineering, and artificial intelligence. The shortlisting criteria / sub-criteria are: (a) The Consultant should demonstrate institutional experience in the design and delivery of digital platforms, specifically regarding the development of legal, regulatory, public-sector, policy, knowledge-management, document-management, or law-library systems. (b) Proven record of successful similar assignments involving secure, scalable web-based systems and the integration of AI/ML, NLP, OCR, and semantic search capabilities for the benefit of international organisations, multilateral development banks, regulators, standard-setting bodies, or public institutions. (c) The firm should demonstrate the technical and managerial capacity to execute the assignment, including a multidisciplinary project team featuring a Project Manager / Solution Architect, alongside specialized experts in Legal/RegTech, AI/NLP and Search, Full-Stack Platform Development, and Information Security / Data Governance. (d) The firm should demonstrate capabilities and experience in delivering the expectations outlined in the draft ToR inAnnex 1 (Attached). The attention of interested Consultants is drawn to Part 01, Chapter 01, Paragraphs 1.12.1 and 1.12.2 of the Guidelines for Procurement of Consultancy Services under Islamic Development Bank Project Financing, April 2019, revised in February 2023 (the “Procurement Guidelines”), setting forth IsDB’s policy on conflict of interest, available athttps://www.isdb.org/project-procurement/documents. International Consultants may associate with other firms to enhance their qualifications but should indicate clearly whether the association is in the form of a joint venture and/or a sub-consultancy. In the case of a joint venture, all the partners in the joint venture shall be jointly and severally liable for the entire contract, if selected. A consultant will be selected
