Demand for Islamic banking across Gulf oil-exporting nations and other Arab markets remains robust. Customer deposits at Shariah‑compliant banks rose by nearly $22 billion in Q1 2025, underscoring the sector’s resilience as conventional banks see slower growth.
Saudi Arabia is expected to lead global Islamic finance expansion through 2025. Economic diversification, elevated sukuk issuance, and a rapidly growing banking sector are fueling the surge . In 2024, Islamic finance assets grew by 10.6%, with banking assets accounting for about 60% of the expansion—of which two‑thirds originated in Saudi Arabia alone.
The UAE illustrates this momentum: as of February 2025, Islamic banks held 18% of total banking assets and accounted for 22.8% of national credit. Islamic bank credit surged to AED 503.5 billion ($162 billion), registering year-on-year growth of around 16%–17% . Emirates Islamic posted record first-half 2025 results, with profit before tax of AED 2.2 billion, deposits up 27%, financing up 13%, and total assets rising by 24% to AED 138 billion.
Globally, assets under Islamic finance totaled $3.88 trillion in 2024, growing nearly 15% year‑on‑year. Islamic banking grew by ~17%, Takaful insurance by ~16.9%, and sukuk issuance surged around 25.6% . Standard Chartered projects the industry will reach $5 trillion in 2025, and accelerate to $7.5 trillion by 2028, a 36% increase over three years driven by demand beyond traditional Muslim-majority markets.
