Conventional and Islamic banks: patronage behaviour of Jordanian customers

A self-administered survey was conducted of Jordanian bank customers in which 700 responses were analyzed through univariate and multivariate statistical methods. The survey was meant to study the attitudes, beliefs, and perceptions of customers using conventional and Islamic banks. It was found in the end that customers did not distinguish between services offered by Islamic banks and services offered by conventional banks. Found to be most useful to consumers were the services of foreign exchange, safety deposit boxes, night depository, and traveler's checks. The authors conclude, having looked at the results of the survey, that Islamic banks ought to shift their focus from commercial banking to investment banking. In this way they might add something new to the banking industry.