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IFC Oman
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Sectors — IFC Oman

Islamic Finance

A Shari’a-compliant financial platform at the centre of the Indian Ocean corridor.

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Islamic finance at IFC Oman

A Shari’a-compliant platform for the Indian Ocean corridor.

Global Islamic finance assets exceeded USD 4 trillion in 2024 and are projected to reach USD 6 trillion by 2030. The majority of that growth is concentrated in the Gulf, South Asia, and Southeast Asia — precisely the corridor that IFC Oman sits at the centre of.

No single financial centre has established itself as the definitive hub for Indian Ocean Islamic finance. IFC Oman has the geography, the trade and diplomatic relationships, and the regulatory framework to change that.

IFC Oman builds on Oman’s domestic Islamic finance foundation — Bank Nizwa, Alizz Islamic Bank, sovereign sukuk issuance — and adds a common law legal framework, an international regulatory architecture, and geographic reach that positions Oman to serve not just its own Islamic finance market but the corridor’s.

An Islamic finance document with arabesque border resting on a walnut desk beside a brass compass and lamp
Structuring, documentation, and Shari’a governance
Proposition

The Islamic finance platform, in eight parts.

01

Islamic banking

A full licensing framework for Shari'a-compliant commercial and investment banks operating under IFC Oman's common law regulatory architecture.

02

Takaful and retakaful

Islamic insurance and reinsurance frameworks serving one of the fastest-growing segments of the global Islamic finance ecosystem.

03

Islamic asset management

Shari'a-compliant fund structures for equity, real estate, private equity, and infrastructure, aligned with the IFC Oman fund platform.

04

Sukuk platform

IFC Oman as a sukuk origination, listing, and trading platform for Omani and international issuers accessing Gulf Islamic capital markets.

05

Islamic trade finance

Murabaha, musharaka, and ijara structures supporting Gulf–South Asia trade flows and cross-border commodity finance.

06

Zakat and waqf

Islamic social finance structures for institutional and high-net-worth clients, hosted under a regulated fiduciary framework.

07

Common law documentation

Sukuk and Islamic finance documentation prepared under IFC Oman's common law framework, familiar to international investors and their counsel.

08

Corridor reach

One regulated address positioned to serve Gulf, South Asian, and Southeast Asian Islamic finance demand from a single Shari'a governance framework.

Product families

Eight product families.

The Islamic finance capabilities licensed and supervised by IFC Oman, subject to Shari’a board and regulatory authorisation.

A marble and dark wood Islamic bank lobby interior with geometric ceiling detail01

Islamic banking

Shari'a-compliant commercial and investment banks.

A full licensing framework for Shari'a-compliant commercial and investment banks, drawing on Oman's domestic Islamic banking foundation established since 2012.

A takaful policy folder on a walnut desk beside a brass magnifying glass02

Takaful

Islamic insurance for the Gulf and South Asia.

Shari'a-compliant risk products designed for the Gulf and South Asian markets, structured under IFC Oman's takaful regulatory framework.

A reinsurance treaty document overlapping a world map printed on parchment03

Retakaful

Islamic reinsurance for regional perils.

Treaty and facultative retakaful capacity for one of the fastest-growing segments of the global Islamic finance ecosystem, serving takaful operators across the corridor.

An Islamic-compliant fund prospectus fanned across a walnut desk with a fountain pen04

Islamic asset management

Shari'a-compliant equity, real estate, and PE funds.

Shari'a-compliant fund structures across equity, real estate, private equity, and infrastructure, aligned with the IFC Oman fund platform's eight structure types.

A sukuk certificate with arabesque border resting on a marble surface beside a brass seal05

Sukuk

Origination, listing, and trading platform.

A sukuk platform designed for both Omani issuers — government, quasi-government, corporate — and international issuers accessing Gulf Islamic capital markets, documented under common law.

An aerial view of a container port at dusk with cranes and shipping in warm golden light06

Islamic trade finance

Murabaha, musharaka, and ijara structures.

Shari'a-compliant trade finance instruments supporting Gulf–South Asia trade flows, priced and documented for both banks and corporates.

An Islamic zakat and waqf endowment ledger on a walnut desk beside dates and a lamp07

Zakat and waqf

Islamic social finance for institutions and HNW clients.

Regulated zakat and waqf endowment structures for institutional and high-net-worth clients, administered within a fiduciary framework.

A Shari'a governance boardroom with dark walnut wood and an ornate Islamic ceiling detail08

Shari'a governance

Board oversight familiar with Islamic finance.

Regulatory oversight and Shari'a board governance developed with Oman's leading scholars, providing the institutional assurance required by international investors in Islamic finance.

At a glance

The Islamic finance platform in numbers.

  • $0T

    Global Islamic finance assets in 2024, projected at USD 6T by 2030

  • 0M+

    Muslims across South Asia, the largest single Islamic finance demand pool outside the Gulf

  • 0

    Year Islamic banking was formally licensed in Oman, establishing the domestic foundation

  • 0

    Product families under IFC Oman's Islamic finance framework

A South Asian financial district skyline at golden hour with a dhow harbour in the foreground
Indian Ocean corridor — Gulf, South Asia, East Africa
South Asia opportunity

600 million Muslims. Underserved demand. One common law gateway.

South Asia is home to over 600 million Muslims — the largest single concentration of Islamic finance demand outside the Gulf. Islamic banking penetration in India, Pakistan, Bangladesh, and Sri Lanka remains well below demand.

IFC Oman-based Islamic financial institutions can structure products for South Asian demand while operating in a common law framework that reduces documentation and legal risk. Oman’s cultural and trade relationships with South Asia, its DTA network, and IFC Oman’s regulatory quality combine into a genuinely differentiated Islamic finance gateway.

  1. 2012

    Oman formally permits Islamic banking. Bank Nizwa and Alizz Islamic Bank licensed alongside Islamic windows of major Omani banks.

  2. 2016

    Oman issues sovereign sukuk, establishing the legal and regulatory infrastructure for Islamic capital market instruments.

  3. 2024

    Global Islamic finance assets exceed USD 4 trillion, concentrated in the Gulf, South Asia, and Southeast Asia.

  4. Today

    IFC Oman opens as a common law platform for the Indian Ocean Islamic finance corridor.

Continue exploring

The eight pillars of IFC Oman.

Move between the sectors of IFC Oman’s regulated platform.

Build the Islamic finance corridor from Oman.

A single point of contact for Shari'a governance, licensing, and structuring. The IFC Oman Islamic finance desk works with banks, takaful operators, sukuk issuers, and asset managers from first conversation through launch.

Contact the IFC Oman desk
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