Islamic Finance Explained

How strong is the demand for Islamic finance?

Banks are hoping to attract business from Britain's two million Muslims, many of whom do not use established banking services because they are in conflict with Shariah law.

In a survey last year, Datamonitor said that demand for Shariah compliant mortgages was strong, and could yield up to £4.5bn in advances by 2006.

Close to Ethical Investments?

Yes - the strict parameters that govern Shariah complaint products and investments makes them 'ethically enabled' investments by default. Hence Shariah compliant mortgages and products are not just restricted to the Muslim market - they are for non-Muslims who are ethically inclined as well.