The Islamic Finance Handbook: A Practitioner's Guide to the Global Markets

Preface

The rapid expansion of Islamic finance is no surprise to anyone familiar with the global financial markets, representing as it does one of the fastest-growing and most exciting sectors in the world. Over the past decade, the industry has seen an exceptional growth spurt, with its influence expanding to encompass multiple markets across the globe. And although Southeast Asia and the Middle East remain stalwart pioneers of the industry, the last few years have seen a seismic shift in global attitudes as the fundamental strengths of Islamic finance and its moral, ethical, and practical advantages become increasingly apparent.

Not only are we seeing new Muslim markets such as Oman, Nigeria, and a plethora of other states enter the industry, but, excitingly, recent years have also marked the entry of non-Muslim majority markets as western nations such as the United Kingdom and Luxembourg also stake their interest in participation. This represents a landmark moment, as the momentum of the past decade gathers pace and the industry finally looks to be hitting real competitive scale.

Whether Muslim or non-Muslim, Asian or Arab, developed nation or emerging market, Islamic finance is now able to offer a real, viable, and ethical alternative to a conventional system that so many feel has failed them on both a material and ethical level. Much of this success can be attributed to the ongoing promotion of the industry by its practitioners, who tirelessly work to encourage and disseminate ...