Islamic Financial Service Products Grew in 2019

Publication Date: 27/05/2020

The value of Islamic financial services products grew strongly in 2019, with the deposits reaching R35 billion (2018: R23 billion) and loans and advances amounting to R12.4 billion (2018: R10.6 billion), according to data from the South Africa Reserve Bank.

This has fueled significant investment Shari’ah product development. South African banks now offer a wide array of investing, lending, protection and transacting products, which compare favourably with conventional bank offerings. And, given the fundamental tenets of fairness, transparency, risk-sharing and socio-economic responsibility, on which Islamic banking is premised, as well as South Africa’s world-class financial services sector, the market for Shari’ah products is expected to grow significantly beyond its traditional Muslim customer base in the coming years.