The first Interest-free banking system is reported to have come into being as early as 700 B.C. This paper looks into the causes as to why the Islamic Banking and Financial systems (IBFs) got left behind, explores its current status and the future challenges faced by this system on its way to...

Interest-free banking system is as old as the recorded history of mankind. It is, therefore, of utmost importance that we explore the reasons as to why the Islamic financial system had to wait for almost fourteen centuries to take shape. The long-term success of this fastest growing financial...