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Islamic fintech finance in Asia is expected to be larger than expected, says the Acting Secretary General of the Islamic Financial Services Council (IFSB).
Zahid Ur Rehman Khokher, Acting Secretary General of IFSB, was speaking at the organization's headquarters in Kuala Lumpur for the journal Nikkei Asian Review. During an interview, Khokher discussed the role of the financial technology sector and the steps taken by the IFSB to apply it within Islamic finance.
By the end of 2016, global Islamic finance, including bank assets, had risen to $ 1,893 billion, according to IFSB figures. However, Khokher believes that Islamic finance has the potential to expand further into the Asian market.
He said:
Some of the world's major Islamic banking markets are in the Asian region, while Islamic capital markets are also flourishing in many countries, and many others are actively exploring opportunities in the Asian region. Islamic finance.
He noted that IFSB was closely following global developments in the field of financial technologies. Still, it feels like there was a shortage of staff with the proper skills needed to spur the development of Islamic finance, adding:
There is a need to develop human resources and appropriate expertise within central banks, Sharia councils, as well as in commercial financial institutions.
The growth of Islamic finance fintech has increased in recent months.
In April, an Islamic fintech firm in London became the first in the United Kingdom to obtain regulatory approval from the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) of the United Kingdom. Such an initiative further underscores Britain's mission to remain the global center of financial technology.
Earlier this month, it was reported that Malaysia was the idea of a "bench test" to develop fintech solutions and stimulate the Islamic finance market. According to Marzunisham Omar, the deputy governor of Bank Negara Malaysia, even though Islamic finance continues to grow in the country, he thinks the time has come for the sector to adopt the "fintech wave".
Image from Shutterstock.