Islamic finance growth to fall to single digits in 2016, report

The growth of Islamic finance is set to slow down next year as a result of falling oil prices. That’s according to a report by Standard & Poor’s, which says the industry’s growth will drop to single digits from between 10% and 15% over the past decade. Other factors affecting the sector include rapid regulatory changes among banks and insurance companies and its fragmented nature. It’s said to be made up of smaller industries that need to be integrated. The firm estimates Islamic finance to be worth more than AED 7.3 trillion ($ 2 trillion), and will hit AED 11 trillion ($ 3 trillion) sometime in the next decade.