ALOR SETAR, May 27 (Bernama) -- Malaysia has an edge over other countries as an excellent Islamic financial hub as it was not only commercialising the system but has also developed the syariah system and education towards that direction.
Association of Islamic Banking Institution of Malaysia (AIBIM) President Datuk Mohd Redza Shah Abdul Wahid said Bank Negara Malaysia and the government were committed in developing the Islamic financial system.
He said several institutions like the International Centre For Islamic Financial Education and universities offering Islamic finance courses were supportive of Islamic finance in the country.
"All this will help the development of Islamic banking in Malaysia. The industry is also keen to expand Islamic banking further and this is the edge we have over other countries," he told Bernama in an interview here Friday.
Mohd Redza, who is also Chief Executive Officer of Bank Muamalat, said he has received many overseas visitors who enquiried, at length, about Malaysia's financial and Islamic banking system.
He said there were 22 banks which offered Islamic banking but Bank Rakyat, Bank Muamalat and Bank Islam were full-fledged Islamic banks which offered much choice for customers.
"The competition is very healthy. Islamic banking, which accounted for 15 per cent of overall banking in Malaysia five years ago, has captured a bigger market of 20 per cent," he said.
Mohd Redza also said Islamic banking was also gaining popularity among non-Muslims because of its attractive features compared with conventional banking.
