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Management soundness is essential for the effectiveness of any industry, most especially in any Islamic financial sector, whereby fairness and justice are the key factors to be observed. This paper aims to examine the management soundness of the takaful industry regarding their asset quality, re-takaful and actuarial and earning and profitability.

This study obtained quarterly data from 2019Q1 to 2021Q4 from the Islamic Financial Services Board across Malaysia, Brunei, Saudi Arabia, Jordan and the United Arab Emirates. The panel data modelling with random-effect and fixed-effect estimators were used for the analysis.

The finding revealed a strong relationship between re-takaful and earnings with management soundness and a weak relationship between asset quality and management soundness. In addition, the result established a significant and strong association between management soundness and earnings and profitability. Therefore, re-takaful and profitability contributed more to the management soundness of the takaful industry than asset quality during the study. An increase in earnings and profitability to enable the takaful industry to pay the claims, especially in calamity, and more focus on the quality of the asset they invested in could enable the smooth running of their day-to-day business affairs.

More attention is required on the quality of assets in their portfolio for the sustainability of the takaful industry to fulfil their underlying objectives. Management soundness in the takaful industry should address the challenges of managerial lathery, which some studies linked with operational inefficiency because of unskilled personnel in the takaful industry. This could benefit takaful clients, irrespective of religion, to attain their associated share of benefits from the Islamic insurance industry.

To the best of the authors’ knowledge, this is the first empirical study that examined the effectiveness of takaful management across Malaysia, Brunei, Saudi Arabia, Jordan, and the United Arab Emirates.

This study aims to assess the extent of the mandatory and voluntary Shariah compliance disclosure in the Shariah Committee Report of Islamic financial institutions (IFIs) in Malaysia. The study highlights the accountability and transparency of the Shariah Committee members to provide full disclosure of relevant Shariah compliance information to the stakeholders.

The study adopts content analysis to quantify and code the number of sentences in the Shariah Committee Report disclosed in the 2016 annual report of 47 IFIs in Malaysia. The extent of Shariah compliance disclosure in the Shariah Committee Report is measured based on the Standard (S) and Guidance (G) items outlined in the Shariah Governance Framework (SGF) as well as the Financial Reporting for Islamic Banking Institutions and takaful operators guidelines issued by Bank Negara Malaysia (BNM) as the reference.

The findings indicate that majority of IFIs complied with the minimum mandatory disclosure requirement based on the Standard (S) items in the Shariah Committee Report as required by the SGF. Highest information on the purpose of Shariah Committee engagement and scope of work performed is disclosed to the stakeholders in almost all IFIs. Only two prominent full-fledged Islamic bank and Islamic banking business in development financial institutions have shown highest accountability to go beyond the minimum disclosure requirement. This includes disclosing higher voluntary information on Shariah governance processes in the Shariah Committee Report of these two IFIs.

This study adopts the SGF (Bank Negara Malaysia, 2010), Financial Reporting for Islamic Banking Institutions (Bank Negara Malaysia, 2016) and Financial Reporting for Takaful Operators (Bank Negara Malaysia, 2015) as the reference to develop the measurement of Shariah compliance disclosure in the Shariah Committee Report. These guidelines issued by BNM are still effective during the period of study, i.e. the year 2016.

The findings contribute towards the relevance for BNM as the regulator to enhance the current disclosure requirement in the Shariah Committee Report as stated in the SGF especially in Islamic windows and takaful operators. The main argument of this paper is that the more information being disclosed in the Shariah Committee Report will lead to better Shariah assurances. The issuance of Shariah Governance Policy Document in 2019 is expected to enhance the credibility, accountability and transparency of the Shariah Committee members concerning their oversight responsibility towards Shariah matters in IFIs’ business operations.

After five years since the issuance of the SGF in 2010, further study on the extent of mandatory and voluntary Shariah compliance disclosure is important to highlight the accountability and transparency on the implementation of the Shariah governance across various types of IFIs in Malaysia.

This study aims to systematically review the literature on modern Islamic finance transactions pertaining to Gharar dimensions. Gharar is defined as uncertainty that potentially leads to ambiguities and conflicts in contracts.

The articles reviewed in this study consisted of 13 articles related to Gharar published between 2013 and 2022. All selected articles were empirically and descriptively searched using specific keywords and strings. The main sources for this study were Scopus and Web of Science (WoS), whereas Google Scholar was a supportive database.

The review found that the dimensions that discussed previous research were trying their best to elaborating Gharar in modern financial transactions. They also demonstrate that rigorous study and deployment of the definition remain in the context defined by jurisprudence scholars. The focus of recent studies pertaining to Gharar is derivatives products that indicate high possibility of uncertainty in its operation.

This method relies heavily on the accessed database, namely, Scopus and WoS, also referred to the articles as recommended by the databases. Furthermore, the criteria of inclusion and exclusion of papers outlined by the authors deemed as an intrinsic limitation in writing systematic literature review.

To the best of the authors’ knowledge, this paper is original in its nature whereby the scholars had different comprehension on how Gharar exists in transaction but they still centred in its original meaning of uncertainty. As a result, this paper also realized how Gharar were interpreted differently relied on the contract’s nature and behaviour. In addition, this paper is expected to contribute to understand how Gharar been interpreted in modern finance transactions and finally reached to the point that further research is needed in establishing Gharar parameter for each contract in Islamic commercial law.

This study aims to investigate what past scholars have learned about Muslim consumer compliance behaviour in Islamic banks and identify what future research is needed. In addition, it also explores the relationship model between the previously studied determining factors and the customer’s Sharia compliance behaviour.

This study used a bibliometric–systematic literature review analysis using the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic reviews and Meta-Analyses (PRISMA) technique by reviewing the articles published from 2013 to 2023. The PRISMA procedures involved several stages, including identification, screening, eligibility, analysis and conclusion based on the findings.

The results found that customer Sharia compliance behaviour determinants in Islamic banks are attitude, subjective norms, perceived behavioural control, Islamic financial literacy, religiosity, consumer conformity, Islamic branding and behavioural intention. Interestingly, the results indicated that such factors as consumer conformity, Islamic branding and sustainable intentions are less discussed.

Decision-makers in Islamic banks must use digital technology to offer better service and make operations more reachable for customers to access information, complete transactions and manage their accounts by Sharia principles. Therefore, the bank needs to continually produce innovative products and services so that customers have a greater variety of options to suit their Sharia-compliant financial needs. Theoretically, this study has contributed by finding the main critical domains influencing customers’ Sharia compliance behaviour, such as attitudes, subjective norms, perceptions of behavioural control, knowledge of Islamic finance, religiosity, consumer conformity, Islamic branding and behavioural intentions. Then, it makes a theoretical contribution by establishing a model that explains how customers make decisions based on Sharia-related factors in the context of their purchases.

Past studies focused on the Sharia compliance behaviour in paying Zakat for takaful customers. Therefore, this study provides critical factors of Sharia compliance behaviour on conformity, Islamic branding and sustainable intention regarding unexplored consensus on the determinants and outcomes of customer Sharia compliance behaviour of Islamic banking.

This study investigated the receptivity of the zakat wakalah system in social finance in Malaysia under the lens of innovation diffusion theory (IDT).

This study conducted quantitative research using Google Forms. The sample size was 261 respondents who participated and were useable in this study. The Statistical Package of Social Science (SPSS) 27 was employed to analyse the data. The data were collected online from August 1 till August 31, 2022.

The results reported significant effects of relative advantage, simplicity, compatibility and perceived benevolence on the zakat wakalah receptiveness index (ZAWi) for Medium Group Acceptance (MEGA) and High Group Acceptance (HIGA). As for Low Group Acceptance (LOGA), insignificant results were reported in relative advantage, compatibility and perceived benevolence but not simplicity.

This study was limited to Labuan geographically, Malaysia and the variables employed. Yet, the results highlight the factors that influenced ZAWi and the two groups namely HIGA and MEGA found them all significant.

This study enhanced the theoretical and practical effects of ZAWi. The results rendered a competitive benchmark for zakat institutions and zakat payers for improved zakat distribution policy.

This study advanced psychology and management theory by improving knowledge of zakat wakalah for effective zakat distribution. In turn, it can be employed as the baseline theory for future studies to enhance existing hypotheses.

This study introduced a new ZAWi formulated from IDT in the context of zakat distribution in Malaysia.

The purpose of this study is to examine the level of Shariah governance disclosure among Islamic banks in Malaysia and the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) countries (i.e. Kuwait, Bahrain, United Arab Emirates, Qatar, Oman and Saudi Arabia). On top of that, the effect of Shariah governance disclosure on Islamic banks financial performance is investigated.

Data underwent quantitative content analysis and a mean comparison of the Shariah governance disclosure mechanisms as well as multiple regression analysis. Shariah governance information is obtained from the Islamic banks' official websites and the Bursa Malaysia Exchange.

The results of the content analysis revealed that the level of Shariah governance disclosure among Malaysian Islamic banks has been more pronounced than in the GCC countries. Additionally, the multiple regression analysis results specified that of the five Shariah governance disclosure mechanisms, the Shariah committee emerged as the strongest determinant in the financial performance of the Islamic banks, followed by transparency and disclosure.

Islamic banks should emphasise publishing Shariah governance information in annual reports to reflect superior accounting practices as assessed by certified Shariah auditors with an effective monitoring system.

The empirical findings are vital for serving as a guideline for Islamic banks in Malaysia and the GCC countries to disclose their practice of Shariah governance and gain empirical insights into its effect on firms’ financial performance. Following that, Islamic banks would improve their accounting practices while adhering to Shariah principles, strengthen internal controls and boost their brand reputation.

This study aims to conduct a systematic literature review on consumer behavior (CB) in Islamic banking (IB), encompassing an overview of researched contexts and topics, identifying literature gaps and proposing a comprehensive future research agenda.

By using bibliometric citation and content analysis, this study investigates 135 documents sourced from Scopus indexed publications.

This study delves into the growing field of CB in IB, offering a comprehensive understanding that encompasses influential journals, theories, research context, characteristics and methods used in IB research.

To the best of the authors’ knowledge, this study is the first to provide a comprehensive review of CB studies in the IB domain detailing research topics, prevailing theories, research settings, important variables and research methods.

This study aimed at exploring the differential effects of different corporate governance (CG) indicators on risk management practices in Islamic financial institutions (IFIs) and conventional financial institutions (CFIs) of Pakistan. It also investigated the moderating role of institutional quality (IQ) in shaping the effects of CG practices on financial institutions of Pakistan.

A sample of 57 financial institutions including commercial banks, insurance companies and Modarba companies over the period 2006–2017 is used to carry out the empirical analysis. The authors applied the robust two-step system-generalized method of moments estimator, which is also called the dynamic panel data estimator. They also built the PCA-based composite index of CG and IQ by using different indicators to investigate the moderating role of IQ. They used three proxies for risk taking, five for CG and one for Shari’ah governance. To test the validity of the instruments, they applied the Arellano and Bond’s (1991) AR (1) and AR (2) tests and the J-statistic of Hansen (1982).

The results provided strong evidence that several individual characteristics of CG and the composite index are significantly related to the operational risk, the liquidity risk and the Z-score (a proxy for solvency risk). The results also revealed that IQ significantly and substantially contributes in reducing the level of risks. Finally, the estimation results indicated that the effects of CG on risk management are significantly different at IFIs and CFIs. This differential impact is mainly attributed to the fundamental differences in business models, operational strategies and contractual obligations of both types of institutions.

The findings of this study are important for enhancing our understanding of how CG relates to risk taking in Islamic and conventional financial services industries and how good quality institutions are important for formulating the governance effects on the risk-taking behavior of financial institutions. The findings suggest that a suitable size of board should be chosen to manage the risk effectively. As the findings show that the risk-taking behavior of IFIs differs from that of CFIs, the regulators and international standard setting bodies should tailor the regulatory frameworks accordingly.

This paper is different from the existing studies in four aspects. First, to the best of the authors’ knowledge, this is the first empirical investigation in Pakistan, which does the comparison of IFIs and CFIs while examining the impacts of CG on risk management. Second, the paper constructs the composite index of CG by considering several different indicators of governance and examines the combined effect of governance indicators on risk management process. Third, this paper adds to the growing literature on the role of IQ by investigating whether it acts as a moderator between CG structures and risk management and if yes, then whether this moderating role is different for IFIs and CFIs. Finally, the paper builds upon the existing research work on the CG effects for different types of financial institutions by proposing a single regression based analytical framework for comparing the effects across two different types of institutions, harvesting the benefits of higher degrees of freedom and avoiding/minimizing the measurement error.

This study aims to examine the joint effect of accounting background and cross-membership of Islamic Supervisory Board (ISB) members on bank investment efficiency.

This study uses data collected from 36 Islamic banks across 15 countries globally, spanning the period from 2012 to 2021. This research uses an ordinary least squares regression and a comprehensive set of endogeneity and robustness tests.

The findings show a negative relationship between the accounting background of ISB members and investment efficiency. However, when ISB members with accounting backgrounds also have ISB cross-memberships, the banks exhibit high investment efficiency. These results suggest that ISB cross-membership plays a crucial role in facilitating Islamic banks’ access to timely information on investment opportunities. This enables ISB members with accounting expertise to thoroughly assess the benefits and risks associated with their investment prospects. These findings imply that ISB members with accounting backgrounds and cross-memberships have greater motivation and thoughtful considerations for making better investment decisions. Consequently, Islamic banks are better positioned to undertake high profitable investment projects, which enhance their investment efficiency.

The current study holds immense value for Islamic bank management in their selection of ISB members who possess an accounting background and cross-membership.

This study delves into a comprehensive investigation of the proficiency, underlying principles and unique characteristics exhibited by ISB members with an accounting background. Moreover, this study acknowledges the burgeoning global prominence of Islamic banks.

Despite being a Muslim-dominated country, Bangladesh has widely embraced traditional microfinance since its inception in the mid-1970s. However, Islamic microfinance, which has a lot to offer to the poor, is still in its infancy and has yet to gain momentum in the country. Therefore, the purpose of this study is to analyze the importance of Islamic microfinance and propose alternative Shariah-compliant microfinance models in Bangladesh.

This study is based on the desk research method, which relies on existing literature to collect secondary data on key concerns of traditional microfinance programs. In addition, institutional-level secondary data were also collected from the Microcredit Regulatory Authority (MRA) of Bangladesh. Guided by the Maqasid-al-Shariah, this study then proposes several Islamic microfinance models to overcome selected challenges faced by the microfinance industry in Bangladesh.

This study suggested three composite Shariah-compliant microfinance models, which are likely to help the underprivileged and thus ensure the achievement of the sustainable development goals in Bangladesh. The first model explained how the operational strategy of incumbent microfinance institutions (MFIs) could be restructured, while the second proposed the organizational strategies for establishing a new MFI. The third model used the notion of Sadaqah (charity) to address the multiple borrowing issues of the industry. Meanwhile, the successful transformation of the conventional microfinance industry to an Islamic one is dependent on the effective collaboration between the regulatory authorities, practitioners and MFIs.

Albeit the paucity of literature on the topic, the findings of this study will guide policymakers/practitioners in designing relevant microfinance models to help transform conventional microfinance into Islamic microfinance in Bangladesh.