Islamic Finance and Economics

Wealth Redistribution & Sharia Compliance Drive Movement for ”Economic Jihad” in Indonesia

January 31, 2020

With backing from domestic Islamist groups and conservative Islamic interests from the Mideast, a movement for “economic jihad” is gaining traction within Indonesia’s business community.
Moody’s Predicts Sharp Rise in Sharia Banking Assets in Turkey

January 29, 2020

Moody’s predicts strong growth in sharia banking in Turkey over the next decade, with Islamic banking becoming the backbone of Turkeys financial sector under an Islamist government aiming to make Istanbul a global financial center on par with London, New York, and Dubai.
Transnational Islamic Ties Cement Indonesia-UAE Multi-Billion-Dollar Investment Deals

January 17, 2020

The president of Indonesia, the world’s most populous Muslim-majority country, concluded a two-day, state visit to the leadership Islamic theocracy of the United Arab Emirates (UAE), by signing a series of multi-billion investment deals.
Social Reform Protests in Lebanon Reveal Weaknesses of Hezbollah's Islamist Sectarian Model

January 13, 2020

The multiple systemic problems in Lebanon's economic, political, and social sectors has generated a near-continuous series of popular protests cutting across religious communal lines, highlighting the weaknesses in Iran-supported Hezbollah's Shiite Islamist sectarian model.
OIC Expands Sharia Finance and Banking Presence in Central Asia

January 06, 2020

A new initiative of the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) will provide sharia-compliant financing and capacity-building to small- and medium-sized enterprises in Uzbekistan, thereby expanding Islamic finance and banking networks in Central Asia.
Indonesia’s Sharia Economic Paradigm Portends Broader Political-Cultural Project Endangering Democracy

December 31, 2019

The steady shift to a sharia-based paradigm for Indonesia’s economy can be linked to the expanding political and social influence of the country’s diverse Islamist organizations, whose expressed goal is the country’s gradual transformation into an Islamic state.
Iran's Diverse Proxy Network Gains Strength Despite Economic Sanctions & Financial Pressure

October 16, 2019

Iran's Islamic theocratic regime's diverse network of political and military proxies has intensified its influence and impact from the Gulf to Levant, despite the systematic intensification of Western economic sanctions and financial pressure.
Islamists Get the Hang of Cryptocurrencies to Fund Jihad

August 28, 2019

Islamist groups are developing the technological capacity to use crypto currencies such as bitcoin for funding jihadist operations, with leading Islamist propaganda sites advertising bitcoin instructions to their followers and Islamist religious leaders starting to issue theological explanations for cryptocurrency as “charitable donations” to jihadist activities.
Moody's Forecasts Strong Five-Year Growth in Islamic Finance in Eurasia's CIS

August 20, 2019

American financial services giant Moody's Corporation is forecasting strong growth of sharia-compliant/compatible finance and banking in the Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS) comprised of ten former Soviet Republics stretching from Russia and Ukraine to the Caucasus and Central Asia.
UK Bank Controversy Trains Light on Gulf Islamist Financing

August 09, 2019

The recent discovery that the UK’s largest Islamic bank is funding Islamist extremist groups in Europe and the US has trained a light on the risks of Arabian Gulf states’ backing of worldwide sharia-compliant/compatible financial entities.