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The purpose of this paper is to analyze the issue of bayʿ wa salaf (the combination of sale and loan contracts in a single arrangement) from the Sharīʿah perspective. Based on the Sharīʿah findings on the issue, the paper examines the existing Islamic banking products and services that use these two specific contracts to determine whether the current practice is in line with Sharīʿah.

The paper uses the qualitative method by reviewing and analyzing relevant literature and operational structures to comprehend the issues pertaining to bayʿ (sale) and salaf (loan). It then provides Sharīʿah parameters for bayʿ wa salaf before applying them in assessing some existing Islamic banking products and practices. Subsequently, the compliance status of the banking operations that use these contracts in a specific product structure can be ascertained.

The paper finds that the bayʿ wa salaf arrangement in the existing Islamic banking products and services, as elaborated in the paper, does not fall under the prohibited category. This deduction is made in accordance with the parameters derived from jurists’ discussion on the issue of bayʿ wa salaf. It also takes into consideration other factors influencing the existence of such arrangements.

This conceptual research highlights the jurists’ discussion on the issue of bayʿ wa salaf and the compliance status of the current products and services that use the contracts in a single arrangement (specifically in the case of Malaysia) without discussing other possible structures that can be applied as an alternative to the bayʿ wa salaf arrangement.

Thorough understanding of the issue can strengthen the industry’s confidence in executing operations that conform to Sharīʿah principles.

The paper provides comprehensive deliberation on the ruling of bayʿ wa salaf from various schools of thought and exhaustive elaboration on existing Islamic banking products that apply bayʿ wa salaf in their structures. This contributes in reinforcing the stakeholders’ confidence in the operations of Islamic banking and finance.

The main purpose of this study is to experiment with interest-free microfinance (IFMF) products and investigate the factors affecting IFMF institutions.

This study uses both quantitative and qualitative data types that will be collected through questionnaires, secondary data, interviews and experimental tests to answer key questions. The collected data were analyzed using repeated-measures analysis ANOVA. This study determines the factors affecting the default rate of Islamic microfinance (MF) products, and evaluates the repayment performance of IFMF products using field experiments.

The participants found that the repayment performance level is higher than that of Qard Al-Hassan, which shows that it is one of the best mechanisms to reduce the default rate among borrowers. It has been observed that women have higher repayment performance than men, and those with different income sources have higher repayment performance levels than those who do not. This study showed that the effects of age, marital status and educational status on the repayment performance level of the participants were not statistically significant. In addition, it was shown that the participants’ status of having or not having children did not have a significant effect on the level of repayment performance.

This study differs from other studies in two ways. First, in terms of field experimentation, this study focuses on the practical impact of IFMF products on customer reimbursement performance. Second, this study tested different demographic variables that could affect the reimbursement performance.

The purpose of this paper is to develop a new Islamic credit card model that is in line with Shariah principles and can be adopted as an alternative to contemporary Islamic credit card models by Islamic financial institutions in Malaysia.

This paper is theoretical in nature and mainly based on descriptive research method approach.

The overall findings indicate that the contemporary practice of Islamic credit card in Malaysia is still controversial in its design and operation. Moreover, the adoption and practice of Shariah contracts in bay’ al-inah, tawarruq and ujrah models are not in line with fundamental doctrines of Shariah and are imbued with the practice of hilah (legal trick), which allows them to circumvent the prohibition of riba. The paper indicates that Al-Muqassah model possibly has a comparative advantage in design and operation when compared with the bay’ al-inah, tawarruq or ujrah models.

The paper is limited to develop a new Shariah-compliant Islamic credit card model. The paper presents a design and defines the underlying Islamic financial contracts and their working mechanisms in the proposed model. However, it will not address other related areas like consumer perception, legal and regulatory requirements.

The paper will have direct implications on contemporary practice of Islamic credit card in Malaysia and elsewhere. The practice of Al-Muqassah model can also possibly have effects on common well-being and economic development.

The paper has relevance for Islamic financial institutions offering Islamic credit cards. The proposed model is fully in line with fundamental doctrines of Shariah and performs the key functions of an Islamic credit card.

The purpose of this paper is to examine the Shariah view on the legitimacy of requiring the entrepreneur to prove that he/she has complied with all business requirements in case the actual profit was below the expected profit in trust-based contracts such as mudarabah and musharakah.

This paper is part of the research which applies qualitative research approaches, including among others, content analysis, interviews, observations and descriptive analysis using fiqh muqaran (comparative analysis of jurists’ arguments) in few phases.

The study found that shifting the burden of proof to the fiduciary is the weightier view and necessary to ensure that both sides are protected. The considerations of protecting people’s wealth (ḥifẓ amwāl al-nās) and mitigating widespread greed (ṭamaʿ) are among the reasons for allowing elements such as ʿurf, tuhmah and dalālat al-ḥāl to be treated as bayyinah in trust-based contracts when the fiduciary is obliged to defend himself from litigation.

The study is meant to strengthen the practices of Islamic banks world wide.

Few protections can be applied for capital provider.

This study is meant to give solution in dealing with moral hazard of both parties, and to provide solution to the regulator for policy drafting and to increase confidence to the industry.

The finding is important in assisting the regulators in drafting the policy to protect both parties without neglecting the essence of trust-based contracts.

Shari'ah governance is a vital aspect that ensures internal shari'ah compliance function in Islamic financial industry, including the takaful industry. Shari'ah audit is a component of shari'ah governance in any Islamic institution as it independently attests the state of shari'ah compliance. Besides, it contributes towards shari'ah non-compliance risk management and enhances the quality of internal shari'ah audit function. The main aim for this chapter is to discuss the scopes and processes of shari'ah audit function in takaful operation. In addition, a discussion on applicable key controls in takaful operation is also provided. This chapter provides an insight into shari'ah audit implementation in a takaful operator, based on the information solicited from an interview session with its shari'ah auditor. This chapter provides fundamental aspects of shari'ah audit exercise in takaful operation and raises takaful operator's views on the challenges and adequacy of guidelines on shari'ah audit for its effective implementation.

Hisbah is one of the distinguished institutions that had emerged since the early days of the Islamic empire. Based on its cardinal duty to enjoin good and prohibit evil, over time, its functions gradually expanded, and its responsibilities increasingly grew. In light of the contemporary trend in establishing institutional framework for consumer protection, entrusting an agency with multifarious tasks may not be the best and effective way in handling consumer protection issues. Thus, this chapter attempts to explore the new paradigm of hisbah as a consumer protection institution in Malaysia with a special reference to the Islamic consumer credit industry. While utilising the doctrinal legal research methodology, relevant sources of law have been examined and analysed. This research finds that the classical hisbah institution provides a good reference point in establishing regulatory agency and dispute management body. Nevertheless, some modifications are required to remain relevant especially in terms of specialisation of role and function. Likewise, it is viewed that adjustment of the hisbah institution is also necessary regarding the characteristic of the muhtasib (ombudsman).

The rapid rise of Islamic crypto assets, underpinned by blockchain technology, has introduced a novel dimension to the Islamic financial landscape, raising questions about their potential as safe havens within emerging Islamic economies. However, the opportunities and challenges associated with this phenomenon remain insufficiently explored. In this context, this study aims to empirically investigate the extent to which blockchain technology can establish Islamic crypto assets as safe havens in equity markets within Islamic economies.

This study addresses the need for rigorous empirical analysis to understand the dynamics between Islamic crypto assets and stock markets in emerging Islamic economies, focusing on the transmission of volatility. While the evolving nature of the Islamic financial sector demands reliable data, the reliance on the most available data offers insights into the expected future trends in this emerging field. The research specifically focuses on three essential assets in the Islamic financial portfolio: OneGram Coin and X8XToken, both backed by gold and MRHB DeFi, an Islamic DeFi asset lacking gold backing. These crypto assets are compared with corresponding assets in seven stock markets of emerging Islamic economies. Using daily log returns of the Islamic crypto assets from various sources and seven Islamic stock indices. The data covers the period from December 27, 2021, to December 28, 2022, capturing the fluctuations in Islamic stocks and cryptocurrency markets during the post-COVID-19 era. This research uses advanced econometric techniques, including pairwise dynamic correlation and the DCC GARCH model.

The findings indicate that Islamic crypto assets exhibit distinct characteristics, with lower volatility and low correlations compared to their conventional counterparts in non-Islamic contexts. This outcome suggests that these Islamic crypto assets could potentially serve as safe havens within Islamic stock markets, offering valuable insights for various stakeholders, including investors, governments and policymakers.

The findings are based on a specific set of Islamic crypto assets and may vary with a different selection. Market dynamics can also influence the relationships observed. Nevertheless, the outcomes provide valuable insights for investors, policymakers and researchers interested in the intersection of Islamic finance, cryptocurrency and technology.

In essence, this research not only unveils the potential of Islamic crypto assets as stabilizing forces but also delineates a trajectory for subsequent research endeavours within the realm of emerging Islamic Fintech, elucidating the challenges, opportunities and benefits that lie therein. With a discerning eye on circumventing the pitfalls entrenched within conventional crypto finance, this study contributes to a heightened comprehension of the transformative role that Islamic crypto assets can assume, ultimately enriching the financial resilience of Islamic economies.

This paper aims to explore the moral aspect of qard (loan) from shariah perspective, and attempts to examine whether each interest-free qard is qualified for the Quranic term qard hasan (loan par excellence)? Also, the study attempts to establish the key constituents of qard hasan in the light of the primary sources of shariah, and seeks to define the legal status of the interest-free qard which fails to qualify for the “term” qard hasan.

This study uses both the primary and secondary sources of shariah to examine the desired character of qard hasan. It employs pure qualitative paradigm to analyse and interpret the data.

This study finds that in between the qard hasan and qard ribawi, there exists a third category of qard too, which neither qualifies for the former nor does fit under the definition of later.

The findings presented in this paper illuminate the blurred line of contemporary understanding of qard hasan. The study adds original value to the corpus of contemporary literature on qard; as it collects and enumerates the ten vital conditions of qard hasan, without which, even an interest-free qard holds no virtuous sanctity in the sight of shariah.

This paper aims to explore the viability of applying Qard Hasan as an Islamic crowdfunding financial instrument to finance micro-enterprises in Malaysia.

This is a qualitative study in which semi-structured interviews were conducted with several crowdfunding professionals concerning the application of Qard Hasan in Islamic crowdfunding. To realise the purpose of this study, the data is subjected to thematic analysis.

The finding reveals that though it is often argued that Qard Hasan is basically not a business-oriented instrument, a closer look at the framework reveals the uniqueness and flexibility of this instrument to be adopted as a viable financial instrument for crowdfunding in financing micro-enterprises in Malaysia. Although it is associated with various risks including default risk and the risk of attracting big funds. However, these risks can be managed and overcome by using FinTech mechanisms such as blockchain to carry out due diligence, monitor the project and ensure the repayment in installment.

The findings of this study may not be suitable for generalisation to all crowdfunding practices as the semi-structured interview is concentrated predominantly in Malaysia. However, it still provides valuable contributions to the Islamic crowdfunding sector in Malaysia between theory and practice.

The Qard Hasan crowdfunding framework in this study can potentially be applied to help micro-entrepreneurs reach out to financial services within their means. This framework provides means to grow the micro-enterprise sector.

Qard Hasan crowdfunding will effectively alleviate poverty by creating an avenue of opportunities for business enterprises and close the gap between the wealthy and the poor classes in society, which will eventually bring about more cooperation, more collaboration and cultivate a generous society.

In spite of the fact that Islamic crowdfunding is not a new topic in research, it lacks empirical studies, particularly qualitative analysis. As this study engages with experts in Shari’ah and crowdfunding regarding the potential application of Qard Hasan, it highlights a fresh discussion both in theory and practice.

Several indigenous credit and savings schemes have been accredited recently in developing countries for the benefit of households and entrepreneurs alike. Famous among them are the Rotating Savings and Credit Associations (ROSCAs) that exist in almost all continents currently. The rapid development of ROSCAs and their varied structures in many countries have been the subject of numerous studies. What has not been thoroughly analysed is the optimum size of these associations and the fact that lending and borrowing is without interest. The aim of this paper is to present a model that would determine the optimum size of ROSCAs and deal with the following issues: how the group size varies with changes in the income level of the members, the demand for the loan, the size of the collected loan and its duration. Further, the question of whether or not lending to the association in return for obtaining larger sums is a violation of the qarḍ (loan) contract is dealt with, and several Sharīʿah compatible formulations are provided.

Economic analysis has been applied to show the optimum size of Qarḍ Ḥasan Associations (QHAs), which are the Sharīʿah-compliant equivalent of ROSCAs, and the Sharīʿah rules of the qarḍ contract to illustrate the legitimacy of group lending.

The major findings of this study are determination of the optimum size of QHAs, the factors that affect the size and suggestion of alternative legal forms for group financing.

Inaccessibility to sources of data to test the hypothesis that has been put forth is the main difficulty encountered when conducting research on the subject.

The paper concludes that the development of informal interest-free ROSCAs in both Muslim and non-Muslim countries is an efficient informal microfinance scheme and that it is compatible with Sharīʿah rules.

The optimum size of ROSCAs and QHAs has been presented in this paper.