Knowledge Creation

Research Focus

One of the strategic pillars of the IsDBG is to support the development of Islamic finance to serve economic development in member countries. In this regard, IsDBI is leading an initiative for Smart Economies for Member Countries. The initiative aims to capitalize on technological innovations in economics and finance, e.g. blockchain technology, fintech, artificial intelligence and renewable energy, to construct innovative solutions for development in IsDB member countries. The Smart Economy initiative aims to enhance the value chains within and across member countries and provide small and medium enterprises an effective access to local and global markets. Meanwhile, it gives Islamic financial institutions an efficient means to support and finance value-creating economic activities with tangible development impact.

Moreover, through research, IsDBI will aim to support efforts of developing the requisite enabling environment for Islamic finance and supporting development financial institutions. This is expected to enhance the impact of Islamic finance on development and employment, to promote inclusive growth and macroeconomic stability. In working to achieve these goals, IsDBI’s initiatives will be pursued through partnerships with strategic stakeholders engaged in fostering socio-economic development through research.

In House Research

In-house research at IsDBI leads to the production of various knowledge products such as books, monographs and reports, covering a variety of areas in Islamic Economics, Banking and Finance.

Books:

The major topics covered by books published through IsDBI research include:

  • Economic Capital for Islamic Banking
  • Shari’ah Supervision and Governance in Islamic Financial Institutions
  • Islamic Banking and Macroeconomic Stability/ Financial Sector Issues
  • Stress Testing for Islamic Banks
  • Risk Management for Islamic financial institutions
  • Regulatory Capital Requirement for Islamic Financial Institutions: An International Survey
  • Islamic Equity: Portfolio Construction and Evaluation
  • Mobilizing Waqf Resources for Poverty Alleviation
  • Islamic Social Finance Architecture
  • Innovations in Waqf-based Development Financing Instruments and Services
  • Islamic Financial Inclusion and Capability
  • Measuring Poverty and Socio-Economic Development based on Maqasid al-Shariah
Reports:

The following reports are published through IsDBI in-house research:

  • Islamic Social Finance Report
  • Islamic Finance Country Reports
  • Global Report on Islamic Finance
  • Islamic Smart Economy Report

Islamic Social Finance Report

This report presents the historical trends, future challenges and prospects for the various segments of the Islamic social finance sector in South and Southeast Asia, with the following countries under study: Indonesia, India, Pakistan, Bangladesh, Malaysia, Singapore and Brunei Darussalam. This report examines the broad regulatory and policy environment at the macro level as well as good and bad practices at the meso and micro levels to seek answers to the following questions as well as to encourage healthy deliberations around them:

  • How much regulation is right for the Islamic social finance sector? Do stringent laws and over-regulation stifle the sector?
  • How do we harmonize the different regulatory frameworks governing institutions based on religious and secular philanthropy, co-operation, not-for-profit and for-profit finance?
  • How do we develop a unified and integrated framework for the Islamic social finance sector?
  • What role do supporting institutions, e.g. networks and associations, institutions of higher learning, trainers and consultants,developers of standards play in the sector?
  • How do we enhance transparency, accountability and governance in the sector?

More specifically, the following questions relevant to specific sub-sectors have major policy implications. While we need to differentiate between Shariah-legal questions and efficiency-related questions for better comprehension, many apparently Shariah-legal issues are related to efficiency.

Islamic Finance and Global Financial Stability (IFGFS)

The global financial crisis of 2008-09 has brought to the forefront key issues concerning the stability and resilience of financial systems. This publication is the Report of the Task Force on Islamic Finance and Global Financial Stability which was initiated by the Islamic Development Bank (IDB) in response to the recommendations of the For​um on the Global Financial Crisis and its Impact on the Islamic Financial Industry, organised by the IDB Group.

The Report was jointly issued by IsDBI and IFSB. It explains that the solution to the fragility of financial system lies not in small regulatory changes but in building a new financial architecture that will promote greater efficiency in the financial intermediation process. The inherent features of Islamic finance have the potential to serve as a basis to address several of the issues and challenges that have surfaced in the conventional financial system during the current crisis. As the role and relevance of Islamic finance in the global financial system gains significance, it has potential to contribute to greater global financial stability and towards strengthening global growth.

Country Reports Islamic Finance Country Reports (IFCRs)

IsDBI has established a long term strategic partnership with CIBAFI and Thomson Reuters in order to enhance the development of the Islamic Financial Services Industry (IFSI). One of the outputs of this partnership is the Islamic Finance Country Report (IFCR) which aims to provide comprehensive coverage of the Islamic finance industry’s characteristics in each of the OIC countries with the final target to attract the domestic and foreign investors to the existing opportunities of the IFSI that match the economic development needs of the countries.

Ten-Year Framework and Strategies for Islamic Financial Services Industry(IFSI) Development: A Mid Term Review

This document jointly published by the IFSB and IsDBI (IDB),was launched during an IFSB-IsDBI Session on Mid-Term Review of the IFSI Development: Ten-Year Framework and Strategies held in Mauritius, 19 May 2014.

Kuala Lumpur Resolution for the Fifth Strategic Roundtable Discussion (SDR): IsDBI, ISRA and DCIEF​

The fifth Strategic Roundtable Discussion (SRD), jointly organized by the International Shari’ah Research Academy for Islamic Finance (ISRA), Islamic Development Bank Institute (IsDBI) and Durham Center for Islamic Economics and Finance (DCIEF), Durham University, met on 29th and 30th April, 2015 in the Pullman Hotel, Bangsar, Kuala Lumpur.  ​

Islamic Economic Studies

The journal Islamic Economic Studies (IES) publishes leading research across all fields of Islamic economics and finance. Established in 1414 Hijri (1993) it is one of the oldest and most respected scholarly journals in the Islamic economics and Islamic finance profession. IES is peer reviewed, and targeted at professional and academic economists and students.

Now, IES is published by Emerald Publishing on behalf of the Islamic Development Bank Institute (IsDBI), a member of the Islamic Development Bank Group (IsDB). The IES is included in the Abstracting Services CD-ROM indexing of the Journal of Economic Literature, published by the American Economic Association.

IES journal is indexed/cited in RePEc and Google Scholar.

Aims and Scope

The journal aims to publish research contributing to the development of theory, practice, and policy making in Islamic economics and finance. It therefore intends to create an interface between academic research and its practical application. The journal welcomes theoretical; technical; and applied articles that draw on all areas of Islamic economics and finance.

Open access

All articles published in IES are published Open Access under a CC BY 4.0 license. There are no fees
for the authors for submission or making their articles Open Access

Click to see IsDBI Journal

Conferences

IsDBI organizes a number of research conferences, seminars and forums on Islamic economics, banking and finance in Member and Non-Member Countries. The objective of organizing these events is to encourage the researcher to write on various issues of Islamic economics, banking and finance and to spread awareness worldwide concerning their importance, viability and stability. Another objective is to expand the frontiers of knowledge by focusing on specific themes and subthemes in the area of Islamic economics, banking and finance and produce literature to be published and widely disseminated.

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