Global Islamic banking assets reached US$924b in 2015

Guess which country has the largest market share.

According to EY, the assets of global participation banking (also known as Islamic banking) reached US$924b in 2015, with growth rates declining across all regions compared to previous years.

The GCC region’s share of participation banking increased to 72%, as the size of assets in the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) countries declined during 2015.

Saudi Arabia, the UAE and Malaysia are the three largest participation banking markets, in terms of assets, representing 34.2%, 17.2%, 13.3% of the global market share respectively.

Gordon Bennie, MENA Financial Services Leader, EY, says: “Today, more than two billion adults still do not have a bank account. There are also more than 200 million micro, small and medium size businesses with unmet financing needs. The demand for a responsible, Sharia-compliant financial system is huge. There is also a wealth of business opportunities offered by FinTech innovations for participation banks, particularly in emerging markets.”