What Is Islamic Finance, and Why Should We Care?

The Islamic finance industry will be worth $3.4 trillion in 2018. Clearly, it is nothing to sneeze at. Yet, what is it, exactly? 'Islamic finance' refers to the means used by financial institutions in the 1.7 billion-strong Islamic world to raise capital. By definition, it is compliant with shari'ah law, even as it interacts with conventional, secular financial systems. In this groundbreaking book, Akhtar Mohammed explains the principles of Islamic finance and explores its function in the international marketplace. He argues that it holds powerful lessons for Western secular financial institutions, provided the "Islamic" in "Islamic finance" can be regarded without suspicion and with open minds. What does Islamic finance have to teach in relation to the worldwide financial crisis and its aftermath, globalization, ethical investment practices, the growth of the Global South, and social movements such as Occupy Wall Street? Mohammed illuminates its successes, failures and future growth in secular terms, and in clear, accessible language intended for non-specialists as well as experts--regardless of their religious beliefs. Akhtar Mohammed was born in Vancouver and obtained a BA in Political Science from the University of British Columbia and an LLB at the School of Oriental and African Studies (SOAS), University of London. He is currently pursuing an LLM in at York University, Toronto. In 2013 he founded the Islamic Finance and Ethics Society at SOAS, later expanding it to King's College, the London School of Economics, and the Cass Business School, City University London.