IslamicFinance.de

Shariah banking offers an opportunity for Africa's existing banks. In Kenya, the Gulf African Bank and the First Community Bank experienced exceptional growth. Standard Chartered said it would soon start offering Islamic banking products in Kenya. As African banks embrace Islamic practices, regulatory bodies are scrambling to issue Shariah-compliant policy statements and rules. Nigeria brought in new guidelines to help deal with sukuk and guidelines were established to deal with takaful. South Africa has rewritten its tax laws to ensure that Shariah-compliant products are more transparent. Uganda, Botswana and Zambia are also looking to make regulatory changes to grow their Islamic banking sectors.