Counting on the Quran

The author primarily describes the basic practices that are undertaken by the Islamic finance industry. He cites an estimate of between $20 and $40 billion to be found in the international Islamic banking system today. The author notes that riba (interest) is forbidden in al-Qur'an and he relates that savings are only for certain specific purposes. The four means by which Islamic finance takes place that the author discusses are murabaha , a method of cost-plus financing involving three parties and two sales; mudaraba , a joint venture in which one party provides capital and the other some skill with an agreement to share profits; musharaka , partnership involving shared profit and shared loss; and Ijara, fixed-price leasing. All four practices are deemed Islamic and in accordance with the shari`a . The author reports that the vast majority (between 80% and 95%) of all Islamic finance deals involve murabaha . The appeal of murabaha apparently stems from its quality of being least