Contemporary practices of Islamic financing techniques

Islamic financial institutions exist as a result of the Islamic prohibition against riba. Although the theory of Islamic banking is widely reported on, the practice of Islamic banks has received relatively little attention. Currently there are private-sector Islamic commercial banks, public-sector Islamic commercial banks (in Iran and Pakistan), and multinational Islamic financial institutions like the Islamic Development Bank. All Islamic banks offer current accounts, either as Amana accounts or qard hasan current accounts. Savings accounts vary in their application from bank to bank but, unlike current accounts, offer a return to investors. Investment deposits are like traditional time deposits except that they operate on the basis of profit-and-loss sharing rather than interest and that deposits can be differentiated not only by maturities but also by their purpose.