KARACHI: Faysal Bank Limited has appreciated the federal government’s decision to make Pakistan interest-free.
The Ministry of Finance last week announced its decision to withdraw their appeal against the Federal Shariat Court’s decree to ensure the conversion to Islamic instruments by 2027 and has already initiated the process.
The Federal Shariat Court, in April 2022, had taken Faysal Bank’s example of a smooth transition to Islamic Financial Instruments (IFIs) as a strong model to follow and asked all banks in Pakistan to switch from the conventional model to the Islamic instruments to make Pakistan’s economy Riba-free.
The following weeks saw many appeals being filed in the Supreme Court to stall or delay the process. The recent decision of the GoP to withdraw the appeal ensures the expedition of this journey towards a unified Islamic financial system in the country.
While appreciating the decision by the federal government, President & CEO, Faysal Bank Limited, Yousaf Hussain has said Faysal Bank, having embarked on and now being on the verge conversion from a conventional to an Islamic Bank, was poised to assume the lead role within Pakistan’s banking and financial sector to facilitate the complete conversion from interest-based banking to a Shariah-compliant banking system.
He further added that the national-level conversion, though a challenge, will be a game changer for Pakistan in enabling Riba-free economic progress. It has worked well, he said, in enabling Faysal Bank the expansion to almost 700 branches, including new customers, from previously unbanked segments of the population.
He said that a proud fact to note was the continuity of work, as throughout the process, not a single branch was closed, and neither was any day marked off, while ensuring ongoing training and development to equip the FBL team with the requisite qualifications and skills.
With this transformation, he mentioned that Faysal Bank had created a blueprint that could now be shared by the State Bank of Pakistan as a reference index. Yousuf expressed his gratitude to the Board, Senior Management, and employees of the bank for their resolve and commitment to this noble journey.
He appreciated that the role of State Bank, and Governor SBP Jamil Ahmed, for their ongoing and unwavering support and for providing continuous access. The guidance from Shariah scholars was and will always remain the beacon for this journey onwards, he added.
Copyright Business Recorder, 2022