12 January 2004	Monday	19 Ziqa'ad 1424

SIALKOT, Jan 11: The Director of the State Bank of Pakistan, Pervez Said, has said the SBP has promulgated the policy of Islamic banking according to which full-fledged banks can be established.

Addressing a seminar on Islamic banking held under the auspices of the Sialkot Bankers Club here on Saturday, he said the SBP had also given regulatory framework for Islamic banking that was a hybrid of the system of Malaysia and Bahrain.

He revealed that a full-fledged Islamic banking department and Shariah Board had been established in the SBP while manuals for conducting Shariah Audit of Islamic banks would be finalized soon.

He said a awareness drive had been initiated in order to educate providers and users of banking services about Islamic finance and remove misconception and confusions about the concept of Islamic banking.

Pervez Said briefed participants of the seminar about the status of Islamic banking in the world. He pointed out that Islamic banking was being conducted in over 70 countries and even conventional banks were offering Islamic banking services.

The assets of Islamic banking were estimated at 50 million dollars in the past ten years and now these assets were estimated at 250 billion dollars, growing at a rate of 15 to 20 per cent per year, he disclosed. He emphasized that the Islamic banking in Pakistan could only be implemented if all stakeholders played their due role.-APP