ALMATY, Kazakhstan, June 27. Eurasian Development Bank (EDB) may become an active promoter of Islamic finance in the region, the Deputy Chairman of the EDB Board Ruslan Dalenov said during the session "Islamic finance in Central Asia" at the Eurasian Development Bank business forum in Almaty, Trend reports.
"EDB can become an active promoter of Islamic finance in the region, being an international organization with a broad base of clients. EDB may become a kind of regulatory sandbox to develop and implement the necessary regulatory amendments," he emphasized.
According to Dalenov, the EDB on the way to becoming a conduit of Islamic finance will attract new investments, offering new tools for the development of the economies of the region.
He said that an "Islamic window" will be launched at the EDB.
"Islamic window in the Eurasian Development Bank in full format will be launched in 2025. Several pilot projects will be financed. This will make it possible to move to the financing of large investment projects," he added.
To note, the Eurasian Development Bank (EDB) Business Forum, which is taking place in Almaty, Kazakhstan, hosted the first session on "Islamic Finance in Central Asia".
The participants of the session discussed the fundamental principles of project financing in Central Asian states and considered related problems and mechanisms for their solution.
The segment of Islamic finance in the world's banking assets is, according to data for the beginning of 2024, 2 percent, but it is already $ 4 trillion, and it is growing rapidly. Indeed, the average annual growth rate of Islamic assets globally over 2015-2021 amounted to 10.5 percent, compared to 5.8 percent among conventional financial assets.
Islamic banks have now gained a strong foothold in more than 40 countries and are beginning to compete effectively with classical credit institutions.
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