IslamicFinance.de

The Islamic Financial Services Board (IFSB) in its annual report highlighted developments in the Islamic Finance Fintech space. To identify relevant crowdfunding platforms with a focus on equity- and loan-based platforms located in the Muslim world, the database of Crowdsurfer was consulted. It lists in 32 of the 57 member states of the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) a total of 108 crowdfunding platforms. After some corrections, the Crowdsurfer database identifies 14 equity-based and 13 commercial loan-based crowdfunding platforms with an active status. The number of platforms in OIC member states that explicitly refer to Islamic finance or Shariah and offer investors financial returns is very small. There are two more Islam-oriented active platforms of this type outside the OIC: Ethis Crowd (Singapore) for real estate, and KapitalBoost (Singapore) for SME financing.

Thousands of Pakistani households are turning to microfinance institutions which provide loans based on Islamic law, or Sharia. The available video looks at micro financing solutions in Pakistan provided by Achuwat which provides interest free loans. Religious lending is expected to grow in the coming years, and this video looks at case studies of a school teacher and tailor. The majority of clients of micro financing solutions are women.

The Islamic Investment Infrastructure Bank, a unit of the Jeddah based Islamic Development Bank (IDB) is expected to be founded in 2016 as a new cross-border institution jointly by the IDB, Indonesia and Turkey. The bank will act to raise funds by means of sukuk issuances to fund infrastructure projects. The bank’s founding members will invite other countries to join as shareholders. Indonesia is also among the 57 prospective founding members of the China-led Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank (AIIB) founded in late 2014. This international financial institution has been regarded as China’s strategy to reduce the influence of the International Monetary Fund (IMF), Asian Development Bank (ADB) and World Bank.

Professor Shehu Usman Rano Aliyu, Director of the International Institute of Islamic Banking and Finance at Bayero University, Nigeria stated Islamic banking and finance is the best option for tackling challenges faced by the Nigerian economy. Meanwhile, Usman Hassan, CEO of Jaiz Bank, urged the Nigerian government to take a closer look at sovereign sukuk issuances to fund infrastructure projects. He stated that sukuk were very apt for Nigeria, as there are no failed projects and the financier (investor) will not allow abuse. He urged to government to look at the structure of sukuk to see how it can be of benefit to the economy as a source of FDI from a new diverse investor base.