Malaysia leads the world in providing a sharia-compliant environment for savings. CIMB Islamic's Badlisyah Abdul Ghani charts the rise of Islamic finance since its founding in the country 50 years ago.
Latest articles from Islamic Finance
Sharia start-ups look to stand out in crowd-funding
November 1, 2012Despite holding core values of social and economic development, questions remain about how beneficial Islamic finance has been for the majority of the Arab world. Could the emergence of crowd-funding platforms help to generate a more equitable distribution of wealth?
Islamic finance: the state of play
October 22, 2012Four experts in Islamic finance discuss the issues affecting the industry at present, and look at what the key opportunities within it are likely to be in the coming years.
Islamic finance interbank rate
December 15, 2011The launch of the world's first Islamic interbank rate is a key step in the industry's efforts to distinguish itself from conventional finance and achieve greater standardisation. The measure of its success will only come with time, however, and is dependent on its ability to offer competitive pricing, its inclusion of more currencies and its application to a range of financial instruments.
Will Islamic finance's asset management potential finally be fulfilled
December 1, 2011In 2010 it seemed that the Islamic asset management industry was taking off when it recorded a 7.6% increase in its assets. But with most sharia-compliant vehicles not satisfying global industry standards, and a large number of relatively small, equity-heavy funds in the sector, growth is needed in many other directions before the industry can fulfil its potential.
Islamic finance roars again
November 1, 2011After recording relatively sluggish growth in last year's survey, this year's ranking shows the Islamic finance industry posting impressive figures, passing the $1000bn mark in assets for the first time.
Top 500 Islamic Financial Institutions: Methodology
November 1, 2011A look at how The Banker and Maris Strategies put together the Top 500 Islamic Financial Institutions survey.
The new value proposition for Islamic finance
November 1, 2011Amid calls for greater reporting transparency and more engagement with the lower end of the economic pyramid, Islamic finance is experiencing a revival. But for sharia-compliant institutions to take advantage of the trends emerging in the marketplace, several key events need to take place.
Best prospects for Islamic finance outside core markets
November 1, 2011Several emerging markets with large Muslim populations combine low bank penetration and a high return on assets with a relatively small market share for Islamic banking, and thus provide further opportunities for growth in the Islamic finance sector.
Islamic finance's full potential still to be unlocked
November 1, 2011Despite an impressive 12 months for Islamic finance, the view from the industry is that results could be even greater if hurdles concerning taxation, regulation, legal frameworks, market challenges and a lack of qualified scholars are tackled.