Abbas Mirakhor

This book provides an introductory theoretical foundation of the ethics embedded in Islamic economics and finance, and it shows how this ethical framework could pave the way to economic and social justice. It demonstrates how Islamic finance—a risk-sharing and asset-backed finance—has embedded universal values, ethical rules, and virtues, and how these qualities may be applied to a supposedly value-neutral social science to influence policy-making. This book argues that ethical and responsible finance, such as Islamic finance, could lead the efforts to achieve sustainable economic development. Iqbal and Mirakhor then conduct a comparative analysis of Islamic and conventional financial systems and present Islamic finance as an alternative that can address today’s growing problems of inequality, social injustice, financial repression, unethical leadership, and lack of opportunity to share prosperity.

This book provides an introduction to the vision of an economic system based completely on the Holy Qur’an—a system defined as a collection of institutions, representing rules of behavior, prescribed by Allah for humans, and the traditions of the Messenger. The authors argue that the main reason for the economic underperformance of Muslim countries and their economies has been non-compliance with the prescribed rules of behavior. Rule non-compliance has been chiefly due to the failure of Muslims to comprehend the Metaframework of the Qur’an and the Archetype Model of the Prophet Mohammad and interpret them in ways compatible with their own generation and time. Askari and Mirakhor believe these rules (institutions), properly adapted to prevailing conditions present what they consider as an ideal economic system.

This book addresses the financing of government budgets with non-debt-creating flows through risk-sharing capital market instruments. It offers a comparative analysis with conventional finance to demonstrate the ability of Islamic capital market instruments to create an impetus for economic stability and growth. Rizvi, Bacha, and Mirakhor guide readers chronologically through the unfolding effects of macroeconomic policy implemented to reduce crippling sovereign debt, increase government financing, and guide governments to the path of economic progress.

This exciting new addition to Palgrave Studies in Islamic Banking, Finance, and Economics argues that social capital can facilitate rule-compliance and co-operation in the sharing of risk in financial and economic activities.

A unique primer on quantitative methods as applied to Islamic finance Introductory Mathematics and Statistics for Islamic Finance + Website is a comprehensive guide to quantitative methods, specifically as applied within the realm of Islamic finance. With applications based on research, the book provides readers with the working knowledge of math and statistics required to understand Islamic finance theory and practice. The numerous worked examples give students with various backgrounds a uniform set of common tools for studying Islamic finance. The in-depth study of finance requires a strong foundation in quantitative methods. Without a good grasp of math, probability, and statistics, published theoretical and applied works in Islamic finance remain out of reach. Unlike a typical math text, this book guides students through only the methods that directly apply to Islamic finance, without wasting time on irrelevant techniques. Each chapter contains a detailed explanation of the topic at hand, followed by an example based on real situations encountered in Islamic finance. Topics include: Algebra and matricesCalculus and differential equationsProbability theoryStatistics Written by leading experts on the subject, the book serves as a useful primer on the analysis methods and techniques students will encounter in published research, as well as day-to-day operations in finance. Anyone aspiring to be successful in Islamic finance needs these skills, and Introductory Mathematics and Statistics for Islamic Finance + Website is a clear, concise, and highly relevant guide.