In order to remove any ambiguity among the general public, the State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) reiterated its commitment for the promotion and development of Islamic banking in Pakistan.
In a press release on Wednesday, the SBP said the share of Islamic banking in total deposits of the banking industry has surged to 12.8% as on June 30 and is consistently growing with a cumulative average growth rate of over 50% for the past 12 years.
Five full-fledged Islamic banks, one Islamic banking subsidiary and 17 banks with dedicated Islamic banking branches are operating in the country with over 1,700 branches spread all over the country, it said. The share of Islamic banking is expected to grow to 20% by 2020. To provide further impetus, the SBP is finalising the draft amendments in the relevant banking laws.
In order to promote quality research and development in the field and to address the capacity constraints in the Islamic banking industry, three Centres of Excellence in Islamic Finance are being established.
Published in The Express Tribune, November 5th, 2015.
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