The aim is to test the Islamic financial model in regions where a large number of Muslims live and where Islamic financial structures already operate. The Bank of Russia will issue licenses and maintain a register of associated financial organizations and regulate their activities.
President of the Chechen Chamber of Commerce and Industry Yusup Chulikov told RG that in the region the structures practicing Islamic banking essentially functioned until September 1. They provided various services such as entering the business as a partner or Islamic dues. But the fact that now large banks will begin to carry out economic transactions that comply with religious norms is already of interest to businessmen.
“Islam condemns loans with interest. Many businessmen reject this model, in which the bank did not care whether you made a profit or not, maybe you worked at a loss, but you had to pay your interest. Another important point is the absence “There is sanctions and fines. “If at any time you cannot pay, you can sell the property, pay off the debt and keep the rest without any additional payment,” Chulikov said.
It highlights that different entrepreneurs can choose the format that best suits them. Therefore, a partnership with a bank would be more suitable for a large company, while for medium and small businesses it may be more profitable to use Islamic payment plans.
Magomedali Yusupov, representative of the working group on the development of state measures supporting Islamic norms of the Dagestan Entrepreneurship and Investment Agency, told RG that Islamic banking in Dagestan is very promising, the need for Islamic finance in the region is approximately 4 billion. rubles.
According to Yusupov, the law on Islamic banking is also good because it will protect investors’ risks on a legal level. “They will start investing in Islamic banking, the product margin of financial institutions will decrease. Now they have “expensive” money, with the influx of investments the situation will improve, which will benefit entrepreneurs,” Yusupov believes.
“We are waiting for the first applications to participate in the experiment,” says Marat Sharifullin, director of the National Bank of Tatarstan. In the application, the participant must confirm compliance with a series of requirements. One of them: the organization itself or its branch must be registered in the pilot region. At the same time, there are no restrictions for clients either by place of residence or religious beliefs.
It is planned to tap the potential of the halal industry. Today, more than 200 business entities that have received the necessary certificate are registered in the register of the Halal Standard Committee. However, according to Sharifullin, Tatarstan still lacks specialists in the field of Islamic finance.
There are already specialized educational centers in the region: the Russian Islamic Institute, the Bulgarian Islamic Academy, master’s programs in Islamic finance have been opened at the Kazan Federal University (KFU) and additional educational programs have been organized.
It is necessary to organize educational work to inform and popularize Islamic finance among businessmen and citizens themselves. “We can create conditions for consumers of Islamic products that are competitive, comfortable and safe, just like classic banking products. Therefore, we believe that Islamic finance may even be of interest not only to the Muslim community, but also to those citizens who are not Muslims or associated with any religious group,” says Kamil Samigullin, president of the Spiritual Administration of Muslims of Tatarstan.
In the region, the muftia manages to cover the basic financial needs of Muslims. Halal securities, a mortgage, a debit card, installment plans under Murabaha and Ijarah norms are offered for the purchase of a car and home appliances, and the Sahih Invest mobile application has been developed to verify that the stocks of companies Russians comply with Shariah norms. .
