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ISLAMIC BANKING:
GENERAL OVERVIEW
BY:MUDASIR GULZAR
MBA & PGPBM IIBS BANGALORE
MAIL ID:makbatool@yahoo.com
Oh believers, take not doubled and redoubled interest, and fear God so that you
may prosper.
Al-Qur'an
This era where trends flourish around increasing aspirations to identify with so
cial conscious initiatives, it comes as no surprise that Islamic Banking is boom
ing. The concept of interest is fundamental to the business of banking. With thi
s background it is very interesting that sharia banking is working without profi
ts and is still flourishing. They are not only profitable but are also growing a
t an astonishing rate in sense of capital, assets and consumers. From Jakarta to
Jeddah to Jordan, 280 Islamic banks operate in over 50 countries, with assets e
stimated between $ 250 million and $ 300 billion. Management Consultants Mckinse
y and Co. say in their world Islamic Competitiveness Report, 2007 that the value
of assets managed by Islamic Banks will grow by 33 % by 2010.
INTRODUCTION
Islamic banking refers to a system of banking, which is consistent with Islamic
Shari’ah (Law), and guided by Islamic economics. Islamic law prohibits the payment
and collection of riba (interest or usury).The main argument against interest i
s that money is not used as a commodity with which to make a profit but that it
should be earned on goods and services only, not on control of money itself. Fea
tures of Islamic Banking are based on ethical principles. Islamic Shari’ah allows
all economic activities in the framework of protecting public interest and safeg
uarding it. Man may make profit from doing business. However, when this runs aga
inst Islamic ethics and morality, it is outlawed. In addition, for an investment
to be legitimate, one of the most important requirements is that its outcome mu
st fulfil the reality of investment transactions and that it enables the Islamic
Financial Institution (IFI) to state what it expects to make in profits. Howeve
r, this cannot be determined as a certainty or can one commit one’s self to it, or
bear any loss sustained.
Main conditions governing Islamic investment include: Money does not generate or
beget money in itself, but it becomes productive if it is involving an activity
or work; Investment is subject to the rule of profit and loss sharing; Investme
nt in business activities is lawful, but prohibitions should be avoided. ; Contr
acts must be free of gharar (uncertainty, ignorance and the conditions which lea
d to disputes).
Historical Development
During the Islamic Golden Age, early forms of proto-capitalism and free markets
were present in the Caliphate, where an early market economy and an early form o
f mercantilism were developed between the 8th-12th centuries, which some refer t
o as "Islamic capitalism". A vigorous monetary economy was created on the basis
of the expanding levels of circulation of a stable high-value currency (the dina
r) and the integration of monetary areas that were previously independent.
A number of innovative concepts and techniques were introduced in early Islamic
banking, including bills of exchange, the first forms of partnership (mufawada)
such as limited partnerships (mudaraba), and the earliest forms of capital (al-m
al), capital accumulation (nama al-mal), cheques, promissory notes, trusts (see
Waqf), startup companies, transactional accounts, loaning, ledgers and assignmen
ts. Organizational enterprises similar to corporations independent from the stat
e also existed in the medieval Islamic world, while the agency institution was a
lso introduced during that time. Many of these early capitalist concepts were ad
opted and further advanced in medieval Europe from the 13th century onwards.
It seems that the history of Islamic banking could be divided into two parts. Th
e earliest references to the organization of banking on the basis of profit shar
ing rather than interest (Fiqh al-Muamalat-the fundamental principal of Islamic
Banking) can be traced to the late forties. However In the next two decades it a
ttracted more attention, partly because of the political interest that it create
d in Pakistan and partly because of the migration of muslims to the western coun
tries. The Islamic Development Bank, an inter-governmental bank established in 1
975, was born of this process, being the first bank incorporating the principles
of sharia banking. The first private interest-free bank, the Dubai Islamic Bank
, was also set up in 1975 by a group of Muslim businessmen from several countrie
s. Two more private banks were founded in 1977 under the name of Faisal Islamic
Bank in Egypt and the Sudan. In the same year the Kuwaiti government set up the
Kuwait Finance House. In the ten years since the establishment of the first priv
ate commercial bank in Dubai, more than 50 interest-free banks have come into be
ing. Though quite a few of them are in Muslim countries, there are now spreading
in other countries as well like in Denmark, Luxembourg, Switzerland and the UK.
In most countries the establishment of interest-free banking has been by private
initiative (mostly by migrant muslims). In Iran and Pakistan, however, it was b
y government initiative and covered all banks in the country.
Modern Islamic banking
The first modern experiment with Islamic banking was undertaken in Egypt under c
over without projecting an Islamic image—for fear of being seen as a manifestation
of Islamic fundamentalism that was anathema to the political regime. The pionee
ring effort, led by Ahmad Elnaggar, took the form of a savings bank based on pro
fit-sharing in the Egyptian town of Mit Ghamr in 1963. This experiment lasted un
til 1967 (Ready 1981), by which time there were nine such banks in the country.
In 1972, the Mit Ghamr Savings project became part of Nasr Social Bank which, ti
ll date, is still in business in Egypt. In 1975, the Islamic Development Bank wa
s set-up with the mission to provide funding to projects in the member countries
. The first modern commercial Islamic bank, Dubai Islamic Bank, opened its doors
in 1975. In the early years, the products offered were basic and strongly found
ed on conventional banking products, but in the last few years the industry is s
tarting to see strong development in new products and services.
Islamic Banking is growing at a rate of 10-15% per year and with signs of consis
tent future growth[11]. Islamic banks have more than 300 institutions spread ove
r 51 countries, including the United States through companies such as the Michig
an-based University Bank, as well as an additional 250 mutual funds that comply
with Islamic principles. It is estimated that over US$822 billion worldwide shar
ia-compliant assets are managed according to The Economist. This represents appr
oximately 0.5% of total world estimated assets as of 2005.
The World Islamic Banking Conference, held annually in Bahrain since 1994, is in
ternationally recognized as the largest and most significant gathering of Islami
c banking and finance leaders in the world.
The Vatican has put forward the idea that "the principles of Islamic finance may
represent a possible cure for ailing markets."
Principles
Islamic banking has the same purpose as conventional banking except that it oper
ates in accordance with the rules of Shariah, known as Fiqh al-Muamalat (Islamic
rules on transactions). The basic principle of Islamic banking is the sharing o
f profit and loss and the prohibition of riba (usury). Common terms used in Isla
mic banking include profit sharing (Mudharabah), safekeeping (Wadiah), joint ven
ture (Musharakah), cost plus (Murabahah), and leasing (Ijarah).
In an Islamic mortgage transaction, instead of loaning the buyer money to purcha
se the item, a bank might buy the item itself from the seller, and re-sell it to
the buyer at a profit, while allowing the buyer to pay the bank in installments
. However, the bank s profit cannot be made explicit and therefore there are no
additional penalties for late payment. In order to protect itself against defaul
t, the bank asks for strict collateral. The goods or land is registered to the n
ame of the buyer from the start of the transaction. This arrangement is called M
urabaha. Another approach is EIjara wa EIqtina, which is similar to real estate
leasing. Islamic banks handle loans for vehicles in a similar way (selling the v
ehicle at a higher-than-market price to the debtor and then retaining ownership
of the vehicle until the loan is paid).
An innovative approach applied by some banks for home loans, called Musharaka al
-Mutanaqisa, allows for a floating rate in the form of rental. The bank and borr
ower form a partnership entity, both providing capital at an agreed percentage t
o purchase the property. The partnership entity then rents out the property to t
he borrower and charges rent. The bank and the borrower will then share the proc
eeds from this rent based on the current equity share of the partnership. At the
same time, the borrower in the partnership entity also buys the bank s share of
the property at agreed installments until the full equity is transferred to the
borrower and the partnership is ended. If default occurs, both the bank and the
borrower receive a proportion of the proceeds from the sale of the property bas
ed on each party s current equity. This method allows for floating rates accordi
ng to the current market rate such as the BLR (base lending rate), especially in
a dual-banking system like in Malaysia.
There are several other approaches used in business transactions. Islamic banks
lend their money to companies by issuing floating rate interest loans. The float
ing rate of interest is pegged to the company s individual rate of return. Thus
the bank s profit on the loan is equal to a certain percentage of the company s
profits. Once the principal amount of the loan is repaid, the profit-sharing arr
angement is concluded. This practice is called Musharaka. Further, Mudaraba is v
enture capital funding of an entrepreneur who provides labor while financing is
provided by the bank so that both profit and risk are shared. Such participatory
arrangements between capital and labor reflect the Islamic view that the borrow
er must not bear all the risk/cost of a failure, resulting in a balanced distrib
ution of income and not allowing lender to monopolize the economy.
Islamic banking is restricted to Islamically acceptable transactions, which excl
ude those involving alcohol, pork, gambling, etc. The aim of this is to engage i
n only ethical investing, and moral purchasing.
In theory, Islamic banking is an example of full-reserve banking, with banks ach
ieving a 100% reserve ratio.However, in practice, this is not the case, and no e
xamples of 100 per cent reserve banking are observed.
Islamic banks have grown recently in the Muslim world but are a very small share
of the global banking system. Micro-lending institutions founded by Muslims, no
tably Grameen Bank, use conventional lending practices and are popular in some M
uslim nations, especially Bangladesh, but some do not consider them true Islamic
banking. However, Muhammad Yunus, the founder of Grameen Bank and microfinance
banking, and other supporters of microfinance, argue that the lack of collateral
and lack of excessive interest in micro-lending is consistent with the Islamic
prohibition of usury (riba).
Current Accounts
Current accounts are an interest-free loan by the account holder to the Islamic
bank, which maintains these funds and pays them to the customer on demand. These
accounts are similar to a loan in guarantee and the payment of the same amount.
An IFI has the right to invest the funds it is holding in current accounts with
out the customer bearing any loss. For this reason, the customer does not get an
y profit on this type of account, but he also does not bear any loss.
Investment Savings Accounts
Many Islamic banks offer savings accounts to their customers. This account allow
s the account holder to place funds in a safe environment till such time when th
ey may wish to withdraw them. Profits and losses under investment savings accoun
ts accrue on the minimum monthly balance. Profits are paid, or losses are deduct
ed, after the expiry of the financial year and the net profits are determined.
The balances under investment savings accounts are invested on the basis of unre
stricted Mudharaba. An Islamic bank has the right to do everything necessary to
realize common interest.
An account holder authorizes the Islamic bank to invest the profits made from th
e moment they are registered in his own account with the Islamic bank.
DIFFERENCES BETWEEN ISLAMIC AND CONVENTIONAL BANKING
There are a number of key differences between the products and services offered
by a conventional bank in comparison to an Islamic Financial Institution (IFI).
Islamic transactions are created in view of the juristic rules of Islamic Shari’ah
and the differences can be highlighted as follows:
Qur’anic rule: “if the debtor is in a difficulty, grant him time till it is easy fo
r him to repay.” However, if he is procrastinating, the bank applies Shari’ah compli
ant rules to guarantee its right, but without resorting to interest.
Funds must be invested in lawful areas that achieve social and economic developm
ent. Areas outlawed by Shari’ah must be avoided. The capital is invested on a part
nership basis between the bank or entrepreneur and the capital provider.
SHAR’AH ADVISORY BOARDS/COMMITTEES
All Islamic Financial Institutions are required to have a Shari ah Supervisory B
oard/Committee. This Board should consist of trustworthy scholars who are highly
qualified to issue fatawa (religious rulings) on financial transactions. In add
ition, Shari ah board members ought to have considerable experience in modern bu
siness/financial dealings and transactions.
The world renown Shari ah expert, Sheikh Nizam Yaquby points out:
"The Articles of Association, prospectuses, or statutes (depending on the type o
f activity) should provide for the existence of a Shari’ah advisory board, whose f
atawa and resolutions should be binding upon the financial institution s board o
f directors and management. The advisory board is required to be independent and
free to give opinions on proposed contracts and transactions. The role of the S
hari’ah supervisory board should be concurrent with that of the financial institut
ion itself in the sense that it should be formed from the moment the financial i
nstitution is incorporated, and that it should provide continued supervision and
permanent checking of contracts, transactions, and procedures. This should be e
xpressly provided for in the Articles of Association or the prospectus."
Feasibility of Islamic banking in India
Current status of Islamic Banking in India
Islamic banks in India do not function under banking regulations. They are licen
sed under Non Banking Finance Companies Reserve Bank Directives 1997 RBI (Amendm
ent) Act 1997, and operate on profit and loss based on Islamic principles. All t
he Islamic banks have to be compulsorily registered with RBI.
Reasons for non implementation of Islamic Banking in India
In the straitjacket world of Indian banking, something as fascinating as Islamic
banking is a distant dream. Nonetheless, countless advocates of Islamic banking
have been trying their best over the years to propagate the concept. In further
ance of this propagation the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) constituted a committee
in 2007 to examine the issue but viewed that Islamic banking cannot be offered
by banks in India as well as the overseas branches of local banks under the pres
ent legal framework. Except a basic offering like current account, almost no oth
er banking product in India can be modified to meet the conditions of Islamic ba
nking. As a genre of financial services, Islamic banking shuns the very idea of
interest rates, and rests on profit-sharing principles. Based on the Shar h law,
it abhors the business of making money out of money, upholding the belief that
wealth is generated through actual trade and investment.The RBI has not put the
report in the public domain.
While the final form of the report is not known, from the newspaper reports it c
an be collected that the members had pointed out how Indian banking laws come i
n the way of various Islamic banking principles. These are as follows:
1. n Al Wadiah (for saving bank account): Section 21 of the Banking Regulation
Act (BR Act) requires payment of interest on such deposits; thus, interest-free
deposit and a simple charging of premium or Hiba is not permissible.
2. Mudarabah (for term deposit or investment): Here again, Section 21 of the B
R Act disallows such products where the bank can invest the money in equity fund
s (in India, equity exposure is determined by a separate set of rules), and the
client has complete freedom in the management.
3. Mudarabah, Musharakah (for project finance and SME credit): Sections 5, 6 of
the BR Act indicate the forms of business a banking company can undertake, and
does not allow any kind of profit-sharing and partnership contract the basis of
Islamic banking.
4. Ijarah (for home finance) : As against Islamic banking where the banks owns
the asset and hold the title, Section 9 of the BR Act prevents the bank from any
sort of immovable property other than private use.
5. Istisna (leasing, buyback): Besides the usual curbs on acquiring immovable p
roperty, offering Islamic banking products many not are bankable due to stamp du
ty, central sales tax and state tax laws that will apply depending on the nature
of the transfer.
The BR Act even disallows an Indian bank from floating a subsidiary abroad to la
unch such products, or offering these through a special window. Thus, the upshot
of the findings is that such banking experiment is impossible without a new law
or multiple amendments to the BR Act.
Another important consideration is the tax procedures. While interest is a passi
ve income, profit is defiantly an earned income which is treated differently. If
principles of Islamic banking are incorporated then how does it comply with the
tax procedure is the moot question. Furthermore RBI cannot act as the lender to
such banks because such accommodation by the monetary authority is also interes
t based. Islamic banks cannot interact with conventional banks based on principl
es of interest.
Conclusion
Though it can be concluded that as of now RBI has stopped all the possibility of
Islamic banking in India (other than NBFCs), there are certain questions which
remain unanswered. The RBI report has not been made available on the public doma
in like other reports is definitely one question waiting to be answered. If the
international banks[10] have established Islamic merged it with their object of
profit making why can the same be done in India also is not answered. Keeping in
mind the flourishment of Islamic Banking all over the world and the muslim popu
lation in India these are the questions which have to be answered immediately an
d with certainty.
THANKING YOU
MUDASIR GULZAR
MBA & PGPBM IIBS BANGALORE
CONTACT AT: 9886168812
EMAINL ID: makbatool@yahoo.com