Abuja: A Nigerian bank will introduce Islamic banking system that abhors payment of interest on borrowed money and also prohibits the loans to be invested in any trade forbidden by the Sharia laws.
The CEO of FinBank Nigeria Plc Suzzane Iroche has said Islamic banking will be introduced in next three months in the northern state of Sokoto.
The initiative to launch this "new religious financial system" is for those customers who wanted "Islamic banking services for a long time”, Iroche said.
Islamic banks forbid loans to be invested in alcohols or any trade forbidden by Islamic (Sharia) laws, she said.
The decision to flag off this initiative from Sokoto was due to the fact that this city played a pivotal role in promoting Islamic virtues and its historical antecedent.
Sokoto is the seat of Islamic Caliphate in Nigeria and considered as the city where Islam was first introduced in the country.
The plan to introduce Islamic banking comes after CEOs of five banks top Nigerian banks were sacked about a month ago by Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) governor, Lamido Sanusi for allegedly aiding and abetting money-laundering which ran into billions of Naira.
The country will open its financial space to Islamic and foreign banks, Sanusi said after the incident.
Bureau Report
