The Regulation of Islamic Financial Institutions (IFIs) and Ethical Oversight in South Asia

This book offers a comprehensive examination of Islamic finance as a legal-ethical system rooted in Sharīʿah, highlighting its regulatory, ethical, and institutional dimensions. It critiques prevailing models of Islamic banking for prioritizing technical compliance over justice, accountability, and public welfare, and advances a maqāṣid-driven vision of regulation. Drawing on comparative case studies from Pakistan, Bangladesh, India, Afghanistan, Sri Lanka, and the Maldives, the book identifies regional challenges while showcasing innovative practices. It introduces the concept of ḥisbah-based oversight and proposes a South Asian Ethical Finance Council as a framework for aligning financial institutions with Islamic legal and ethical standards. Bridging theory and practice, the study integrates insights from Islamic law, finance, and governance to address pressing regulatory and ethical questions. It is an essential resource for scholars, policymakers, and practitioners of Islamic finance, financial regulation, and comparative law.

A.H.M. Ershad Uddin is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Islamic Law, Faculty of Theology at Kocaeli University, Türkiye. He earned his PhD from Marmara University, focusing on the jurisprudential analysis of Islamic banking in Bangladesh. His research spans Sharīʿah governance, Islamic finance, gender and family law, and comparative Islamic legal studies. Dr. Uddin has presented scholarly papers at leading international institutions, including Harvard University Divinity School (2023), Cambridge University (2019), McGill University (2018), University of Edinburgh (2016), and Monmouth University (2016). He has published extensively on Islamic finance, ethics, and the regulation of Islamic institutions, and actively contributes to global debates on the role of Islamic law in financial, economic, and social contexts.