IslamicFinance.de

Barclays and Absa maintain their interest in Africa as a target for Islamic insurance. There are plans to introduce the Takaful offering to the African continent. With a Muslim population of over 500 million, Africa represents a very good market perspective. The experience of Barclays and Absa in Africa shall be used in order to provide financial products that are suitable for each country.

More on: http://www.iol.co.za/business/companies/absa-africa-target-for-islamic-i...

Barclays and Absa keep their focus on Africa and plan to accept the group’s Islamic Insurance offering - Takaful. Due to the huge number of Muslim population in the continent - over 500 million people - there are excellent market opportunities for Islamic finance and, in particular, for Absa.

Islamic finance banking options are progressively being seen as a viable alternative to traditional banking services in Africa and are growing to found not only the African Islamic community but all those searching for an interest-free banking alternative.
Key speakers from Nigeria, Malaysia and Saudi Arabia will join leading South African experts from ABSA, alBaraka Bank, KPMG and other financial institutions in the Islamic Finance Africa Conference that will take place on 21 - 24 February 2012 in South Africa.

Through the acquisition of the local Islamic insurance company, Takafol SA, by Absa, it is once more underlined that the mainstream banks in South Africa are taking Islamic finance as a serious niche market business.
The Takaful premium market in South Africa is at this point estimated at about 3 billion South African rands (about $420 million), which is very modest compared to the conventional insurance market.
Banks such as Absa and Standard Bank posess clear strategies of growth and expansion beyond South Africa to sub-Saharan Africa, and Islamic banking and insurance are an attractive component of this offering especially in countries with large and affluent Muslim populations.