Islamic Finance Lexicon

Hundreds of financial terms from Islamic Shari'aa view explained in easy vocabulary in order to be accessible and understandable to all. You can easily understand the meaning of the terms without having any specific Islamic and Shari'aa Law background. Islamic Banking & Finance refers to banking and financial services provided in accordance with the principles of Sharia, applied through the development of Islamic economics. The main principles, which underlie the theory of Islamic Banking & Finance, are prohibitory in nature and their infringement is considered ¿Haram¿ (sinful and prohibited by Sharia).The prohibitions are as follows: (i) Loans that carry interest, known as ¿Ribä;(ii) Investment in companies that provide goods or services considered contrary to Islamic principles;(iii) Agreements where ownership of goods is dependent on the occurrence of uncertain, predetermined events in the future, known as ¿Maysir¿; and(iv) Speculative transactions, known as ¿Gharar¿.This document aims to provide concise and accessible reference to the terminology one may encounter when working within the sphere of Islamic Banking & Finance.