scholarly journals Shortcomings and proposed reforms in the existing shariah governance of islamic banking

2020 ◽  
Vol 2 (1) ◽  
pp. 15-34
Author(s):  
Abdulazeem Abozaid

Since its inception a few decades ago, the Islamic banking and finance industry has been self-regulated with regards to Shariah governance. Despite the existence of certain regulatory authorities from within the industry, such as Accounting and Auditing for Islamic Financial Institutions (AAOIFI) and Islamic Financial Services Board (IFSB), none of their resolutions or standards are effectively binding. Few countries have enforced some rules related to Shariah-governance. Still, in most cases, these rules did not go beyond the requirement of formulating Shariah controlling bodies, which is practically left to the banks themselves. Islamic banks are almost left to choose or dismiss their Shariah controllers, and no clear criteria are set by any authority to ascertain the proper qualifications of the Shariah controllers. Moreover, some of the Shariah standards and fatwas are found to conflict with the established resolutions issued by Fiqh academies. These matter point to the deficiencies in the existing Shariah governance and hence the need to address them.

2021 ◽  
Vol 18 (1) ◽  
pp. 39-58
Author(s):  
Abdulazeem Abozaid

Since its inception a few decades ago, the industry of Islamic banking and finance has been regulating itself in terms of Sharia governance. Although some regulatory authorities from within the industry, such as Accounting and Auditing Organization for Islamic Financial Institutions (AAOIFI) and Islamic Financial Services Board (IFSB), the Islamic banking and finance industry remains to a great extent self-regulated. This is because none of the resolutions or the regulatory authorities' standards are binding on the Islamic financial institution except when the institution itself willingly chooses to bind itself by them. Few countries have enforced some Sharia-governance-related regulations on their Islamic banks. However, in most cases, these regulations do not go beyond the requirement to formulate some Sharia controlling bodies, which are practically left to the same operating banks. Furthermore, some of the few existing regulatory authorities' standards and resolutions are conflicted with other resolutions issued by Fiqh academies. The paper addresses those issues by highlighting the shortcomings and then proposing the necessary reforms to help reach effective Shariah governance that would protect the industry from within and help it achieve its goals. The paper concludes by proposing a Shariah governance model that should overcome the challenges addressed in the study.Pada awal berdiri, Lembaga Keuangan Syariah merupakan lembaga keuangan yang menerapkan Hukum Syariah secara mandiri dalam sistem operasionalnya. Ia tidak tunduk pada peraturan lembaga keuangan konvensional, sehingga dapat terus berkomiten dalam menerapkan Hukum Syariah secara benar. Selanjutnya, muncullah beberapa otoritas peraturan yang berasal dari pengembangan Lembaga Keuangan Syariah. Diantaranya adalah Islamic Financial Services Board (IFSB) dan Accounting and Auditing Organization for Islamic Financial Institutions (AAOIFI). Hal ini tidak menyimpang dari kerangka peraturan Hukum Syariah, sebab standar peraturan dan keputusan yang dikeluarkan ditujukan khusus untuk Lembaga Keuangan Syariah saja. Beberapa Negara telah menerapkan peraturan tata kelola Hukum Syariah pada Bank Syariah mereka. Namun dalam banyak kasus, peraturan yang diterapkan tidak mampu mengontrol Lembaga Keuangan Syariah tersebut secara penuh. Sehingga, secara praktis proses pengawasan diserahkan kepada lembaga keuangan yang beroperasi. Akan tetapi, beberapa standar dan keputusan yang dikeluarkan oleh sebagian pemangku kebijakan bertentangan dengan keputusan yang dikeluarkan oleh beberapa akademi Fiqh. Artikel ini ditulis untuk menyoroti permasalahan yang timbul pada tata kelola Lembaga Keuangan Syariah, khususnya kekurangan yang tampak pada sistem tata kelola. Kemudian, penulis akan mengajukan usulan tentang efektifitas tata kelola Lembaga Keuangan Syariah yang bebas dari permasalahan.


Author(s):  
Azmuddin Razali ◽  
Mohammad Amir Wan Harun

This study examined the implementation of moratorium in the Islamic hire purchase financing based on Al-Ijarah Thumma Al-Bay’ (AITAB) from the Shariah perspective. The implementation of moratorium by Bank Negara Malaysia (BNM) is a new practice in the banking and finance industry in Malaysia. Implementing the moratorium causes several changes to the AITAB contract such as the extension in contract tenure and the increase in the total payment obligation due to the profit charged on the outstanding principal. This study analysed these changes from the Shariah perspective by using the al-takyif al-fiqhi methodology. The results of the analysis confirm the practice of moratorium by IFIs is in line with the Shariah requirements as long as it is agreed by the parties to the contract - which are the bank and the customer. Needless to say, both Ijarah Policy Document and Hire Purchase Act 1967 allow any forms of amendments including profit compounding when the AITAB contract is restructured, provided that such amendments are agreed between the contracting parties. Despite this permissibility, IFIs are still required to comply with the new ruling issued by SAC BNM that prohibits the practice of profit compounding during the COVID-19 crisis. Although, in principle, the ruling is based on the concept of ihsan (beneficence) which is not compulsory (wajib) but rather recommendation (istihbab) from the Shariah perspective; however, from the regulatory perspective the ruling is compulsory for IFIs to comply pursuant to section 28(1) and 28(2) of Islamic Financial Services Act 2013 (IFSA) that stated compliance with Shariah means compliance with any ruling of the Shariah Advisory Council. The moratorium is seen as a manifestation of the concept of ihsan (beneficence) towards the customers affected financially due to the COVID-19 pandemic. This commendable effort should be encouraged and continued by the Islamic financial institutions in upholding the Shariah principle of maslahah and lifting of difficulties (raf al-haraj), particularly in the current outbreak of COVID-19 and the impact of MCO.


Author(s):  
Atharyanshah Puneri

The rapid growth of Islamic banking and finance industry demanded an improvement in term of standards, frameworks, policy, technologies, resources, and guidelines in order to go beyond without compromising the core values of Islam itself. In the context of legal framework of Islamic banking and finance, it is most likely this industry needs to be highly regulated in order to avoid manipulation and abuse by the irresponsible parties. One of the crucial issue in the area of Islamic Banks in Indonesia is regarding about the dispute resolution mechanism for Islamic Banks. Based on Indonesian positive law, there are two alternative dispute resolution mechanisms that can be exercised by parties to settle disputes in cases involving Islamic Financial Institutions (IFIs) namely through litigation or non-litigation. Litigation comes under the jurisdiction of the Religious Court. Researcher in this study are look deeper into the dispute resolution mechanism for Islamic Banks in Indonesia, as well as going through some decided cases. And based on the study done, it was found that alternative dispute resolution mechanism is more effective to resolve Islamic Banks dispute rather than litigation. In the future, researchers may conduct more research to examine deeper about the dispute resolution mechanism for the whole Islamic Economics and Finance in Indonesia. Moreover, researchers need to look at the regulators' and legislators’ perception towards dispute resolution and legal environment.


2020 ◽  
Vol 10 (1) ◽  
pp. 110 ◽  
Author(s):  
Muhammad Iqmal Hisham Kamaruddin ◽  
Mustafa Mohd Hanefah ◽  
Zurina Shafii ◽  
Supiah Salleh ◽  
Nurazalia Zakaria

The main focus of shariah governance for an organization is to ensure that it is comply with shariah laws and regulations. Under Islamic finance industry, shariah governance is being given attention due to rapid growth of this industry in the world. For Malaysia, the authority through Bank Negara Malaysia (BNM) have taken a proactive role by introducing shariah governance guidelines including the Shariah Governance Framework (SGF) 2010, the Islamic Financial Services Act (IFSA) 2013 and the latest is the Shariah Governance Policy Document (SGPD) 2019. These shariah governance guidelines are supposed to support the development of shariah governance practices especially by Islamic Financial Institutions (IFIs) in Malaysia. However, there is limited to none study conducted to compare these guidelines. These shariah governance guidelines is necessary to be compared in order to find out whether these guidelines are complemented each other and to identify any differences among these guidelines. Therefore, the aim of this study is to compare between these shariah governance guidelines. Based on the analysis, it has been found that SGPD 2019 is the most comprehensive covers on shariah governance as compared to IFSA 2013 and SGF 2010. However, these three guidelines still not become comprehensive enough, as there is still limited to none discussion on the definition and objectives of shariah governance itself.


Author(s):  
Abdulazeem Abozaid

Purpose The paper aims to highlight the challenges facing Islamic finance industry and outline the prospectus of what constitutes a sound Islamic banking product in terms of both its Shariah control and product development methodology. Design/methodology/approach The paper analytically addresses the internal challenges facing Islamic finance industry by highlighting, first, the deficiencies in the existing Shariah supervisory work and, then, the deficiencies in the product development methodology followed in Islamic banks. Findings Islamic banking and finance is facing some internal challenges which require immediate action. Although facing the external challenges may be beyond the capacity of the industry players, Islamic banks have no excuse to overlook or turn a blind eye to their internal challenges which can be overcome by enacting Shariah governance for both products and Shariah control and reforming the methodology of product development. Originality/value This paper highlights an issue that has not received the needed attention, and it proposes the necessary solutions to the problems it identifies.


Author(s):  
Rusni Hassan ◽  
Ahmad Azam Othman ◽  
Muhammad Naim Omar ◽  
Mohammad Deen Mohd. Napiah ◽  
Mohamad Asmadi Abdullah ◽  
...  

Abstract: Shariah compliance is the backbone of Islamic banks. As an institution established within the ambit of Shariah, Islamic banks are expected to ensure that their aims, activities, operations and management adhere to the Shariah principles and values. Failure to comply with Shariah, will expose Islamic Financial Institutions (IFIs) to Shariah non-compliance risk. Subsequently, it is an essential duty of the IFIs to manage Shariah risk properly. In order to effectively manage the risk vulnerability of the IFIs, proper measures for risk management have been put in place in different frameworks that are either domestic or international based. In the Malaysian context, IFIs are guided by relevant regulations such as the Shariah Governance Framework 2010, IFSB principles and Islamic Financial Services Act 2013 with regards to Shariah risk management. This research examined the regulatory requirements of the Shariah risk management process for Islamic financial institutions that operate in Malaysia, in the context of the Guidelines on Shariah Governance Framework 2010 issued by the Central Bank of Malaysia. The paper discusses the concept of “risk”, “Shariah risk” and “Shariah non-compliant risk” in the context of Islamic Financial Institutions and also examines the process adopted by the Malaysian IFIs in managing the Shariah risk. The hypotheses that the paper seeks to establish are that there are differences between the concept of Shariah risk and Shariah non-compliant risk; and that the Shariah risk management process adopted by the IFIs are different than the conventional risk management process due to the unique features and requirements of the IFIs.   Keywords: Shariah, Risk management, Islamic Financial Institutions.   Abstrak: Pematuhan Syariah adalah tulang belakang bank Islam. Sebagai sebuah institusiyang ditubuhkan dalam bidang Syariah, bank Islam dijangka memastikan bahawa matlamat, aktiviti, operasi dan pengurusan mereka mematuhi prinsip dan nilai Syariah. Kegagalan mematuhi Syariah, akan mendedahkan Institusi Kewangan Islam (IFIs) kepada risiko ketidakpatuhan Syariah. Selepas itu, adalah tanggungjawab penting IFI untuk menguruskan risiko Syariah dengan betul. Untuk mengatasi kelemahan risiko IFI secara berkesan, langkah-langkah yang sewajarnya untuk pengurusan risiko telah dilaksanakan dalam rangka kerja yang berbeza sama ada di dalam negeri atau antarabangsa. Dalam konteks Malaysia, IFI dipandu oleh peraturan yang berkaitan seperti Rangka Kerja Tadbir Urus Syariah 2010, prinsip IFSB dan Akta Perkhidmatan Kewangan Islam 2013 berkaitan dengan pengurusan risiko Syariah. Kajian ini mengkaji keperluan pengawalseliaan proses pengurusan risiko Syariah untuk institusi kewangan Islam yang beroperasi di Malaysia, dalam konteks Garis Panduan mengenai Rangka Tadbir Urus Syariah 2010 yang dikeluarkan oleh Bank Negara Malaysia. Makalah ini membincangkan konsep “risiko”, “risiko Syariah” dan “risiko tidak patuh Syariah” dalam konteks Institusi Kewangan Islam dan juga mengkaji proses yang diterima pakai oleh IFI Malaysia dalam menguruskan risiko Syariah. Hipotesis ini bertujuan untuk melihat perbezaan antara konsep risiko Syariah dengan risiko tidak patuh Syariah; dan proses pengurusan risiko Syariah yang diterima pakai oleh IFIs adalah berbeza daripada proses pengurusan risiko konvensional disebabkan oleh ciri-ciri unik dan keperluan IFI.   Kata kunci: Syariah, Pengurusan risiko, Institusi Kewangan Islam.


2012 ◽  
Vol 40 (1-2) ◽  
pp. 191-201 ◽  
Author(s):  
Sherin Kunhibava

AbstractIslamic banking is the conduct of banking according to Shariah or Islamic law. Statistically Islamic banking has had phenomenal growth, according to the Asian Banker Research Group, the world's 100 largest Islamic banks have set an annual asset growth rate of 26.7% and the global Islamic finance industry is experiencing an average growth of 15-20% annually1. Recently the Prime Minister of Malaysia commented that Malaysia has been maintaining its leadership in Islamic banking and finance for over three decades2. As an International leader in Islamic banking, it would be interesting to explore the development of Islamic banking in Malaysia. This will be the objective of this paper. This paper will focus on the historical development of Islamic banking in Malaysia, from the creation of the Haj Pilgrim's Fund Board in the 1960s to the current Islamic banking scene of 17 local Islamic banks and five International Islamic banks in operation. This paper will also explore the unique regulatory and governance framework of Islamic banking in Malaysia, by touching on the Islamic banking Act 1983, the Central Bank of Malaysia Act 2009, the Banking and Financial Institutions Act 1989 and the Shariah Governance Framework introduced in 2011 by the Central Bank of Malaysia. This paper will also briefly introduce how Islamic banking works.


2021 ◽  
pp. 275-287
Author(s):  
Christian Castro

In recent years the rise of Islamic banking has been one of the most important trends in the economic sphere, with an estimated 1.5 billion Muslims in the world, this arena has plenty of room for expansion. Conforming to Shariah (Islamic Law) puts a huge demand among Muslims looking for financial products and services that adhere to their beliefs. If it weren’t for the creation of such alter-natives to conventional banking and finance, Muslims would find it hard to participate in our globalized world without violating their religious principles. There are currently over 300 financial Institutions across the global sphere providing some type of Islamic financial product. According to some experts, the assets that are currently being managed under Shariah law, which range from investment to commercial banks and investment funds, are estimated to be no less than 300 billion. Other experts in the industry estimate the assets under mana-gement to be much larger. The FSA (Financial Services Authority), a regulator for financial services based out of London, estimates the total amount associated with Shariah banking to be as much as 500 billion. Even the U.S rating agency, S & P, estimates the sukuk (deed) market has reached over 75 billion and will likely be over 150 billion by the end of the decade. It used to be that Islamic fi-nancial products were more of a niche market but over time they are now considered mainstream, with many well-known interna-tional financial institutions battling to get a little piece of the pie.


2018 ◽  
Vol 3 (2) ◽  
Author(s):  
M. Dliyaul Muflihin

The problem of Islamic economics is also increasingly complex with the large number of banks. To meet the needs of transactions, banks have products that are offered to the public. In accordance with the function of the bank, namely collecting and distributing funds to the public. The purpose of channeling funds by Islamic banks is to support the implementation of development, improve justice, togetherness and equal distribution of people's welfare. This paper will answer what is the meaning of al-mashaqqah tajlib al-taysir and how do the Implications of al-mashaqqah tajlib al-taysir in the development of Islamic economy? The result of research shows that the meaning of the rule of al-mashaqqah tajlib al-taysir is the difficulty of bringing convenience. The point is that if implementing a provision of shara' mukallaf faces obstacles in the form of difficulties and limitations that exceed the limits of reasonable capabilities, then the difficulty automatically creates relief provisions. In other words, if we find difficulty in carrying out something that is to be sharia, then the difficulty becomes a justifiable cause to facilitate in carrying out something that is to be provision of sharia, so that we can continue to run the sharia of Allah easily. The implications raised by the rules of al-mashaqqah tajlib al-taysir are the determination of the law of Islamic financial institutions. This impact is seen when Islamic law allows transactions in Islamic banking financial institutions, so that the community will easily meet the needs by transacting with Islamic banking through contracts that have been agreed upon. Keywords: al-Mashaqqah Tajlib al-Taysir, Islamic Economic Development


2020 ◽  
Vol 13 (2) ◽  
pp. 29
Author(s):  
Shujaat Saleem ◽  
Fadillah Mansor

This paper aims to explore whether the practices of Ijarah financing by Islamic banks in Malaysia are in line with the Accounting and Auditing Organization for Islamic Financial Institutions (AAOIFI) Shariah Standard No: (9) on Ijarah financing. Semi- structured interviews based on open-ended questionnaires were conducted, recorded verbatim, and transcribed for content analysis. Our study revealed flaws in the contemporary practice of Ijarah financing and indicated that it was slightly out of line with the AAOIFI Shariah standard. The study will not only help the Islamic banking industry of Malaysia to reduce, if not eliminate the gap between the practices of Bank Negara Malaysia (BNM) and AAOIFI Shariah standards pertaining to Ijarah financing but also create novel literature due to the fact that, no study has been undertaken to date, which analyzes the practices of Ijarah financing by Malaysian Islamic banks in the light of the AAOIFI Shariah standards.


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