Is It Possible to Develop Islamic Finance in Western European Countries?
Is It Possible to Develop Islamic Finance in Western European Countries?

Summary/Abstract: The article provides an overview of Islamic banking and finance in major Western European countries by evaluating the level of Islamic finance penetration and market maturity by product offerings, examines the recent growth of this industry. It also highlights the challenges faced by the Islamic finance in general and on specific Western markets in particular, such as the heterogeneous character of clients and potential clients, competition from conventional banks, a proper training and qualification in Islamic finance, an adequate promotion of financial instruments that are compatible with Shari’ah law, how to gain a strong and a respectable position in Western financial markets. On the other hand, Western European countries are looking for new sources of liquidity and financing by attracting liquidity from emerging markets, increasing the interest in finding alternative financial solutions, so, Islamic finance can be such an alternative, being inherently less prone to crisis because of its risk- sharing feature. The paper conclude that these past years have seen an increase in the participation of Western countries in Islamic financial services and this trend is set to continue in the future.

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